System and method for handling remote drawing commands

ABSTRACT

Examples of systems and methods are provided for handling remote drawing commands. A system may comprise a buffer module configured to receive, at the system from a remote server system over a remote access connection between the system and the remote server system during a remote connection session, remote drawing commands, according to a drawing command rate, of a remote application running on the remote server system. The buffer module may be configured to store the remote drawing commands. The system may comprise a timer module configured to facilitate sending at least some of the remote drawing commands in the buffer module to a graphics module according to a refresh rate that is less than the drawing command rate. The timer module may be application agnostic.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C.§119 from U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/169,664,entitled “ENABLING SERVER SIDE COMPUTING ON A REMOTE CLIENT WHILEFACILITATING AN IMPROVED USER EXPERIENCE FOR THE REMOTE CLIENT USER,”filed on Apr. 15, 2009, U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No.61/169,675, entitled “CACHING RESULTS OF REMOTE CLIENT DRAWING COMMANDSAND PERIODICALLY UPDATING A DISPLAY MEMORY,” filed on Apr. 15, 2009, andU.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/169,667, entitled “ENABLINGSERVER SIDE COMPUTING FROM A REMOTE CLIENT AND FACILITATING THE REMOTECLIENT TO CUSTOMIZE AND CONTROL A SERVER APPLICATION,” filed on Apr. 15,2009, all of which are hereby incorporated by reference in theirentirety for all purposes.

BACKGROUND

One approach to the design and implementation of computer networks,particularly with regard to the development of client/serverapplications, includes designing client applications and client devicesso that the majority of the heavily used resources are at a remotecomputing device, such as a centralized server, connected via network.These client devices generally have minimal memory, disk storage, andprocessor power, but are designed under the premise that most usersconnected to a powerful server do not need the additional processingpower. With these client devices, the total cost of ownership isminimized, because of the reduced resources and because the clients canbe centrally administered and updated from the server. As such, theseclient devices are suited for a network which can handle a significantnumber of devices. Client devices may also be equipped with screens ordisplays for providing information to users of the client devices. Insuch cases, drawing commands written directly to the display memory ofthe client devices can subsequently be shown on the displays.

SUMMARY

In one aspect of the disclosure, a system is provided for handlingremote drawing commands. The system may comprise a buffer moduleconfigured to receive, at the system from a remote server system over aremote access connection between the system and the remote server systemduring a remote connection session, remote drawing commands, accordingto a drawing command rate, of a remote application running on the remoteserver system. The buffer module may be configured to store the remotedrawing commands. The system may comprise a timer module configured tofacilitate sending at least some of the remote drawing commands in thebuffer module to a graphics module according to a refresh rate that isless than the drawing command rate. The timer module may be applicationagnostic.

In another aspect of the disclosure, a method is provided for handlingremote drawing commands. The method may comprise receiving, at a systemfrom a remote server system over a remote access connection between thesystem and the remote server system during a remote connection session,remote drawing commands, according to a drawing command rate, of aremote application running on the remote server system. The method maycomprise storing the remote drawing commands in a buffer module andfacilitating sending at least some of the remote drawing commands in thebuffer module to a graphics module according to a refresh rate that isless than the drawing command rate.

In yet another aspect of the disclosure, a system is provided forhandling remote drawing commands. The system may comprise means forreceiving, at a system from a remote server system over a remote accessconnection between the system and the remote server system during aremote connection session, remote drawing commands, according to adrawing command rate, of a remote application running on the remoteserver system. The system may comprise means for storing the remotedrawing commands and means for facilitating sending at least some of theremote drawing commands in the means for storing the remote drawingcommands to a graphics module according to a refresh rate that is lessthan the drawing command rate. The means for facilitating sending may beapplication agnostic.

In yet another aspect of the disclosure, a machine-readable mediumencoded with instructions executable by a processing system to perform amethod for handling remote drawing commands is provided. Theinstructions may comprise code for receiving, at a system from a remoteserver system over a remote access connection between the system and theremote server system during a remote connection session, remote drawingcommands, according to a drawing command rate, of a remote applicationrunning on the remote server system. The instructions may comprise codefor storing the remote drawing commands in a buffer module and code forfacilitating sending at least some of the remote drawing commands in thebuffer module to a graphics module according to a refresh rate that isless than the drawing command rate.

It is understood that other configurations of the subject technologywill become readily apparent to those skilled in the art from thefollowing detailed description, wherein various configurations of thesubject technology are shown and described by way of illustration. Aswill be realized, the subject technology is capable of other anddifferent configurations and its several details are capable ofmodification in various other respects, all without departing from thescope of the subject technology. Accordingly, the drawings and detaileddescription are to be regarded as illustrative in nature and not asrestrictive.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A illustrates an example of a display on a client device during aremote access session with a remote server.

FIG. 1B illustrates an example of a web browser running on a server.

FIGS. 1C to 1E illustrate examples of different portions of the webbrowser displayed on a client device.

FIG. 2 is a conceptual block diagram of a computer network according tocertain aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a conceptual block diagram of a server according to certainaspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a conceptual block diagram of a client device according tocertain aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5A is a conceptual block diagram of a server according to certainaspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5B is a conceptual block diagram of a client according to certainaspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example of a remote access connection.

FIG. 7 illustrates a composite view at the client device according tocertain aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 8A illustrates an example of a local GUI according to certainaspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 8B illustrates an example of a graphical keyboard according tocertain aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 9 illustrates a display at the client device according to certainaspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 10 is a conceptual block diagram of server and client remote accessmodules according to certain aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 11 illustrates an example of a plurality of connections between theserver and the client device.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram that illustrates an exemplary computingsystem in accordance with certain embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 13A illustrates an example of an operation of a system according toone aspect of the present disclosure.

FIG. 13B illustrates an example of a configuration of an apparatusaccording to one aspect of the present disclosure.

FIG. 14A illustrates an example of a remote application displayed at aclient device.

FIG. 14B illustrates an example of a graphical keyboard displayed at theclient device for entering text for the remote application.

FIG. 15A illustrates an example of an area of the display output of aremote application that is displayed in a remote application view of aclient device.

FIG. 15B illustrates an example in which the area of the display outputin FIG. 15A is scrolled to the right.

FIG. 16A illustrates an example in which a dialog box or window islocated outside the area of the display output displayed in the remoteapplication view.

FIG. 16B illustrates an example in which the area of the display outputdisplayed in the remote application view is scrolled to the right toencompass the dialog box or window.

FIG. 17 illustrates an example in which a portion of an object of aremote application is displayed at a client device.

FIG. 18 illustrates an example in which a remote application view of theclient device is scrolled to the right to reveal the entire object ofthe remote application.

FIG. 19A illustrates an example in which a portion of an object islocated within an area of the display output displayed in the remoteapplication view.

FIG. 19B illustrates an example in which the entire object is locatedwithin the area of the display output displayed in the remoteapplication view.

FIG. 20 illustrates an example of a local GUI at a client device listingapplications that are available at a remote server.

FIG. 21 illustrates an example of a remote desktop displayed at a clientdevice.

FIG. 22 is a conceptual block diagram of an agent module according tocertain aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 23A illustrates an example of an operation of an apparatusaccording to one aspect of the present disclosure.

FIG. 23B illustrates an example of a configuration of an apparatusaccording to one aspect of the present disclosure.

FIG. 24A illustrates an example of an operation of an apparatusaccording to one aspect of the present disclosure.

FIG. 24B illustrates an example of a configuration of an apparatusaccording to one aspect of the present disclosure.

FIG. 25A illustrates an example of a display system that may be utilizedby a client device, according to one approach.

FIG. 25B illustrates an example of drawing commands that may be providedto a display system, according to one approach.

FIG. 26A illustrates another example of a display system that may beutilized by a client device, according to one approach.

FIG. 26B illustrates an example of drawing commands that may be providedto a display system, in accordance with one aspect of the subjecttechnology.

FIG. 27A illustrates a simplified diagram of a remote drawing commandsystem, in accordance with one aspect of the subject technology.

FIG. 27B illustrates a simplified diagram of a remote drawing commandsystem, in accordance with one aspect of the subject technology.

FIG. 28A illustrates an exemplary method for handling remote drawingcommands, in accordance with one aspect of the subject technology.

FIG. 28B illustrates an example of a configuration of an apparatus, inaccordance with one aspect of the subject technology.

FIG. 29 illustrates an exemplary method of facilitating sending drawingcommands to a graphics module, in accordance with one aspect of thesubject technology.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The detailed description set forth below is intended as a description ofvarious configurations of the subject technology and is not intended torepresent the only configurations in which the subject technology may bepracticed. The appended drawings are incorporated herein and constitutea part of the detailed description. The detailed description includesspecific details for the purpose of providing a thorough understandingof the subject technology. However, it will be apparent to those skilledin the art that the subject technology may be practiced without thesespecific details. In some instances, well-known structures andcomponents are shown in block diagram form in order to avoid obscuringthe concepts of the subject technology. Like components are labeled withidentical element numbers for ease of understanding.

FIG. 1A shows an example of a display 100 at a client device with alarge screen during a remote access session with a server. The display100 includes the local desktop 105 of the client device, a remote viewwindow 115 showing an image of a remote desktop 115 and a remote webbrowser application 120 running on the server. The image of the remotedesktop 115 and remote application 120 are based on display output dataof the remote desktop 115 and remote application 120 from the server.

FIG. 1B shows an enlarged view of the remote web browser application120. The remote web browser application 120 includes a GUI 122 (e.g.,toolbars) and a window 124 for displaying web content. The GUI 122 isdesigned to be viewed on a large display. As a result, it can be verydifferent for a user at a client device with a small display to remotelyinteract with the remote web browser 120. For example, if the image ofthe entire remote web browser application 120 is displayed on a clientdevice with a small display, then the GUI 122 is greatly reduced in sizemaking it difficult for the user to view the GUI 122 and selectgraphical control objects in the GUI 122.

If the user at the client device zooms in on a portion of the remote webbrowser application 120 to enlarge that portion for viewing on a clientdevice with a small screen (e.g., mobile phone), then the user needs toconstantly manipulate the remote view by adjusting the zoom andscrolling to view different portions of the web browser application 120.FIG. 1C shows an example of a client device 135 in which a portion ofthe remote web browser application 120 has been zoomed in for viewing onthe display 140 of the client device 135 (e.g., smartphone). In thisexample, only a portion of the GUI 122 is visible. As a result, the userat the client device has to adjust the zoom and/or scroll the remoteview on the display 140 to view the GUI 122. FIG. 1D shows anotherexample in which a different portion of the GUI 122 is visible on thedisplay 140. FIG. 1E shows an example in which the GUI 122 is notvisible at all on the display 140. The different portions of the webbrowser application 120 displayed in FIGS. 1C to 1E are shown in FIG. 1Bin dashed boxes. Thus, interacting with a remote application running ona server from a client device (e.g., smartphone) can be very cumbersomeand difficult.

FIG. 2 illustrates a simplified diagram of a system 200 in accordancewith an aspect of the present disclosure. The system 200 may include oneor more remote client devices 202 in communication with a servercomputing device 204 (server) via a network 206. In one aspect, theserver 204 is configured to allow remote sessions (e.g., remote desktopsessions) wherein users can access applications and files on the server204 by logging onto the server 204 from a client device 202. Such aconnection may be established using any of several well-known techniquessuch as the Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) on a Windows-based server.

By way of illustration and not limitation, in one aspect of thedisclosure, stated from a perspective of a server side (treating aserver as a local device and treating a client device as a remotedevice), a server application is executed (or runs) at a server 204.While a remote client device 202 may receive and display a view of theserver application on a display local to the remote client device 202,the remote client device 202 does not execute (or run) the serverapplication at the remote client device 202. Stated in another way froma perspective of the client side (treating a server as remote device andtreating a client device as a local device), a remote application isexecuted (or runs) at a remote server 204.

By way of illustration and not limitation, a client device 202 canrepresent a computer, a mobile phone, a laptop computer, a thin clientdevice, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a portable computing device,or a suitable device with a processor. In one example, a client device202 is a smartphone (e.g., iPhone, Android phone, Blackberry, etc.). Incertain configurations, a client device 202 can represent an audioplayer, a game console, a camera, a camcorder, an audio device, a videodevice, a multimedia device, or a device capable of supporting aconnection to a remote server. In one example, a client device 202 canbe mobile. In another example, a client device 202 can be stationary.According to one aspect of the disclosure, a client device 202 may be adevice having at least a processor and memory, where the total amount ofmemory of the client device 202 could be less than the total amount ofmemory in a server 204. In one example, a client device 202 does nothave a hard disk. In one aspect, a client device 202 has a displaysmaller than a display supported by a server 204. In one aspect, aclient device may include one or more client devices.

In one aspect, a server 204 may represent a computer, a laptop computer,a computing device, a virtual machine (e.g., VMware® Virtual Machine), adesktop session (e.g., Microsoft Terminal Server), a publishedapplication (e.g., Microsoft Terminal Server) or a suitable device witha processor. In one aspect, a server 204 can be stationary. In anotheraspect, a server 204 can be mobile. In certain configurations, a server204 may be any device that can represent a client device. In one aspect,a server 204 may include one or more servers.

In one example, a first device is remote to a second device when thefirst device is not directly connected to the second device. In oneexample, a first remote device may be connected to a second device overa communication network such as a Local Area Network (LAN), a Wide AreaNetwork (WAN), and/or other network.

When a client device 202 and a server 204 are remote with respect toeach other, a client device 202 may connect to a server 204 over anetwork 206, for example, via a modem connection, a LAN connectionincluding the Ethernet or a broadband WAN connection including DSL,Cable, T1, T3, Fiber Optics, Wi-Fi, or a mobile network connectionincluding GSM, GPRS, 3G, WiMax or other network connection. A network206 can be a LAN network, a WAN network, a wireless network, theInternet, an intranet or other network. A network 206 may include one ormore routers for routing data between client devices and/or servers. Aremote device (e.g., client device, server) on a network may beaddressed by a corresponding network address, such as, but not limitedto, an Internet protocol (IP) address, an Internet name, a WindowsInternet name service (WINS) name, a domain name or other system name.These illustrate some examples as to how one device may be remote toanother device. But the subject technology is not limited to theseexamples.

According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the terms“server” and “remote server” are generally used synonymously in relationto a client device, and the word “remote” may indicate that a server isin communication with other device(s), for example, over a networkconnection(s).

According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the terms“client device” and “remote client device” are generally usedsynonymously in relation to a server, and the word “remote” may indicatethat a client device is in communication with a server(s), for example,over a network connection(s).

In one aspect of the disclosure, a “client device” may be sometimesreferred to as a client or vice versa. Similarly, a “server” may besometimes referred to as a server device or vice versa.

In one aspect, the terms “local” and “remote” are relative terms, and aclient device may be referred to as a local client device or a remoteclient device, depending on whether a client device is described from aclient side or from a server side, respectively. Similarly, a server maybe referred to as a local server or a remote server, depending onwhether a server is described from a server side or from a client side,respectively. Furthermore, an application running on a server may bereferred to as a local application, if described from a server side, andmay be referred to as a remote application, if described from a clientside.

In one aspect, devices placed on a client side (e.g., devices connecteddirectly to a client device(s) or to one another using wires orwirelessly) may be referred to as local devices with respect to a clientdevice and remote devices with respect to a server. Similarly, devicesplaced on a server side (e.g., devices connected directly to a server(s)or to one another using wires or wirelessly) may be referred to as localdevices with respect to a server and remote devices with respect to aclient device.

FIG. 3 illustrates a simplified block diagram of a server 204 inaccordance with an aspect of the present disclosure. The server 204comprises an agent module 322, an OS module 324, one or more applicationcontrol modules 325, a desktop module 328, a server remote access module334 and an operating system (OS) 330 in communication with the modules.In one aspect, the OS module 324 can be a part of the OS 330. The server204 is communicatively coupled with the network 206 via a networkinterface 332. The modules can be implemented in software, hardwareand/or a combination of both. Features and functions of these modulesaccording to various aspects are further described in the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 4 illustrates a simplified block diagram of a client device 202 inaccordance with an aspect of the present invention. The client device202 comprises a viewer controller (VC) module 456, a client remoteaccess module 452 and an operating system (OS) 460 in communication withthe modules. The modules are further in communication with various userinterface devices (not shown in FIG. 4) via a human interface devices(HID) connection 458. The user interface devices may include one or moreoutput devices (e.g., one or more of a display, a speaker, or otheraudio, image or video output devices) and one or more input devices(e.g., one or more of a keyboard, a mouse, a trackball, a microphone, astylus, a touch screen, a touch pad, a pen, a tablet, or other audio,image or video input devices). The modules are also in communicationwith the network 206 via a network connection 462. The modules can beimplemented in software, hardware and/or a combination of both.Additional features and functions of these modules according to variousaspects of the present disclosure are further described in thedisclosure.

FIGS. 5A and 5B are conceptual block diagrams illustrating a server 204and a client device 202 according to an aspect of the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 5A, the server 204 may comprise the server remoteaccess module 334 and the agent module 322. The server remote accessmodule 334 is configured to establish a remote access connection 525with the client device 202 to provide the client device 202 with remoteaccess to a desktop and/or applications running on the server 204. Theserver remote access module 334 may comprise a remote access applicationand may communicate with the client device 202 over a network 206 basedon a remote access protocol (e.g., RDP/ICA), other protocols or acombination of protocols. Remote access applications allow a user at aclient device to remotely access a desktop and/or application running ona server. Examples of remote access applications include, but are notlimited to, the Microsoft® Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) application andthe Citrix® Independent Computing Architecture (ICA) application.

The server remote access module 334 is also configured to receivecommand messages from the client device 202 and communicate the receivedcommand messages to the agent module 322. The agent module 322 may beconfigured to control a desktop and/or application running on the server204 based on the received command messages, as described further below.

The server 204 further comprises an application module 326, the desktopmodule 328 and the OS module 324. The application module 326 comprisesan application 327 and an application control module 325. An application327 may include one or more applications. The application 327 mayinclude, for example, a web browser application, a word processingapplication, a spreadsheet application, a game application, an audioapplication, and/or other applications. The application 327 may alsoinclude applications for rendering multi-media content including, forexample, Adobe® Acrobat, Microsoft® Silverlight, and/or otherapplications. In one example, the application 327 is executed (or runs)at the server 204, and the client device 202 does not execute (or run)the application 327 locally at the client device 202.

An application control module 325 may include one or more applicationcontrol modules. The application control module 325 may be configured tocontrol the application 327 based on commands from the agent module 322.The application control module 325 may comprise one or more ActiveXcontrollers for controlling Windows-based applications or other types ofcontroller. The application control module 325 may also control theapplications based on user inputs received by the remote access module334 from the client device 202. The user inputs may comprise pointerinputs, keyboard inputs and/or other inputs. The application controlmodule 325 may also control the applications based on events generatedby the application 327 or the OS 330.

The desktop module 328 may be configured to generate a desktop thatprovides a GUI for allowing a user to select and launch applications onthe server 204, manage files, and configure certain features of theoperating system 330. The GUI may be a server-based GUI presented by theagent module 322. Alternatively, the GUI may be controlled by the agentmodule 322 and displayed natively on the client device. The desktop maydisplay icons representing different applications that can be launchedon the server 204, in which a user can select an application by moving apointer to the corresponding icon and double clicking on the icon. TheOS module 324 may be configured to communicate certain OS events to theagent module 322 and the server remote access module 334, as describedfurther below.

The server 204 further comprises the operating system 330, which maymanage and provide communication to and receive communication from themodules and application shown in FIG. 5A. The operating system 330 mayalso manage multiple remote user sessions allowing multiple clientdevices to remotely access the server 204. The operating system 330 mayinclude Microsoft® Windows, Linux, Unix, Mac OS or another operatingsystem. Although the server remote access module 334 is shown separatelyfrom the operating system 330, the server remote access module 334 maybe considered part of the operating system 330. For example, the remoteaccess module 334 may comprise an RDP application that comespre-installed on the server 204 as part of Microsoft® Windows.

Referring now to FIG. 5B, the client device 202 may comprise the clientremote access module 452 and the viewer controller module 456. Theclient remote access module 452 may be configured to communicate withthe server 204 over a network 206 to remotely access a desktop and/orapplications running on the server 204. The client remote access module452 may communicate with the server remote access module 334 based on aremote access protocol (e.g., RDP/ICA), other protocols or a combinationof protocols. In one aspect, the client remote access module 452 may beconfigured to receive display output data of a desktop and/orapplication running on the server 204 from the server remote accessmodule 334 over a network 206.

In one aspect of the disclosure, display output data may comprisevisual/audio information that a user located at a server 204 would haveseen on a display at the server (e.g., a “virtual” display) and/or wouldhave heard from an audio output such as a speaker at the server (e.g., a“virtual” speaker). In one aspect, the display output data may comprisean image (e.g., bitmap) and/or drawing commands of the display output ofa desktop and/or application running on the server 204. In one aspect,drawing commands provide instructions or information to a display systemas to what is to be drawn on a display. The instructions or informationmay include, for example and without limitation, the location, texture,geometry, shading, light intensity, or color, or any combinationtherein, of a pixel or group of pixels of the display. In some aspects,a drawing command corresponds to multiple pixels. Still in some aspects,a drawing command corresponds to a single pixel of a display. In someaspects, drawing commands may include raster operations. In one aspectof the disclosure, the phrase “display output data” may be sometimesreferred to as “display data”, “display output” or vice versa.

The client remote access module 452 may be configured to send userinputs to the server remote access module 334 over a network 206. Theuser inputs may comprise pointer inputs, keyboard inputs and/or othertypes of input. The client remote access module 452 may also beconfigured to send command messages to the server remote access module334, which are described in further detail below. The remote accessconnection 525 between the server 204 and client device 202 may comprisea plurality of virtual channels for communicating different types ofdata. For example, a RDP connection may include different virtualchannels for display output data and user inputs. FIG. 6 illustrates anexample of the remote access connection 525 comprising multiple virtualchannels 620 a to 620 c.

The viewer controller module 456 may comprise a remote view module 535,a local view module 540 and a display module 555. The remote view module535 may be configured to receive display output data of a desktop and/orapplication 327 running on the server 204 from the client remote accessmodule 452 and generate a remote view of the display output data of theremote desktop and/or application. In one aspect of the disclosure, thephrase “remote view” may sometimes be referred to as “remote applicationview” or vice versa. In one aspect of the disclosure, the term “anapplication” or “a remote application” may refer to an application, aremote application, a desktop, or a remote desktop.

The local view module 540 may be configured to generate a local GUI thatallows a user at the client device 202 to remotely control theapplication 327 running on the server 204. The local view module 540 maygenerate the local GUI based on a configuration file 541. In one aspect,the file 541 may be generated by the agent module 322 or applicationmodule 326 and be sent to the client device 202. The file 541 may fullydefine the layout, design and logical operation of the local GUI. Thiswould allow the server 204 to update the local GUI in the client device202 without having to make modifications to the client device 202. Thelocal GUI may provide similar controls as the GUI of the application 327running on the server 204. The local GUI may include graphical controlobjects for controlling certain functions of the application 327.

For the example of a web browser application, the graphical controlobjects of the local GUI may include an address field for entering theaddress (e.g., URL) of a web page, a refresh button, a go button, andscrollbars. The local GUI is displayed on the local display 560 of theclient device 202. A user at the client device 202 may select graphicalcontrol objects of the local GUI displayed on the display 560 using aninput device 565, for example, a touch screen overlying the display 560.As described further below, the local GUI may be optimized for thedisplay 560 of the client device 202 to provide the user at the clientdevice 202 with a user friendly interface for remotely controlling theapplication 327 running on the server 204.

The display module 555 may be configured to receive a local GUI from thelocal view module 540 and a remote application view of a remote desktopand/or a remote application from the remote view module 535 and generatea composite view comprising the local GUI and the remote applicationview of the remote desktop and/or remote application.

FIG. 7 shows an example of a composite view rendered on a display 560 ofa client device 202. In this example, the composite view includes aremote application view 704 for viewing an image of the display outputof a remote application 327 running on the server 204. The remoteapplication view is based on the display output data of the remoteapplication 327 received from the server 204. The user may manipulatethe image of the remote application 327 shown in the remote applicationview 704. For example, the remote application view 704 may be responsiveto, for example, viewing selections by a user such as zooming factor,the depth of the color palette used, viewing angle (pan and tilt) and soon. The viewing selections may be provided in a GUI. The user may alsozoom in and out within the remote application view 704 using anytechnique. For example, the user may zoom in by sliding two fingers onthe display 560 away from each other and zoom out by sliding the fingerson the display towards each other on the display 560, which is currentlysupported by, for example, iPhone and Palm Pre. User inputs within theremote application view 704 are directed to the remote view module 535.

The composite view may also include a local GUI 702 and 706. The localGUI 702 may display a local header for the application shown in thedisplay area 704. In one aspect, the local header may display anapplication name based on information received from the server 204. Inanother aspect, the local header may be locally generated (e.g., aremote session window). In yet another aspect, the local header maydisplay an editable text input area, such as an address field for a webbrowser. The local GUI 706 may display, for example, local control GUIobjects such as a local control GUI toolbar. The local control GUIobjects may be based on information received from the remote server 204.

The dimensions and layouts of the remote application view 704 and localGUI 702 and 706 are not limited to the example shown in FIG. 7. Theremote application view 704 and local GUI 702 and 706 may have otherdimensions and layouts, for example, based on the remote applicationbeing accessed by the client device 202.

In one aspect, the local GUI 702 and 706 is not generated from thedisplay output of a remote application 327 running on the server 204.For example, the local GUI 702 and 706 is not an image of the remoteapplication's GUI generated from the display output of the remoteapplication 327 running on the server 204. Instead, the local GUI islocally generated by the local view module 540, for example, based onconfiguration file 541 (shown in FIG. 5B). Furthermore, theconfiguration file 541 may be received by the local view module 540 bythe application control module 325 or the agent module 322.

FIG. 8A shows an example of a local control GUI 706. The local controlGUI 706 comprises a toolbar 806 including graphical control objects. Thegraphical control objects may include a keyboard icon 820, a BACK arrow822, a FORWARD arrow 824, a pointer icon 826, a MOUSE icon 828 and aTOOLS icon 830. When a user selects the keyboard icon 820 (e.g., bytouching or tapping), the local view module 540 may change the localcontrol GUI 806 to display a graphical keyboard 820 a for the user toenter text (shown in FIG. 8B). The layout details of a keyboard 820 amay be provided in a configuration file 541 (shown in FIG. 5B), or maybe based on the local GUI tools provided by the OS 460 of the clientdevice 202.

When a user selects the BACK icon 822, the web browser applicationdisplays a previously displayed web page. In certain embodiments, theclient device 202 may perform this by communicating to the server 204, acontrol code corresponding to this event. In other embodiments, theclient device 202 may include a local cache of previously displayed webpages and may use the cached data to render the previously displayed webpage. In a manner similar to the BACK icon 822, the FORWARD icon 824 maybe used to render a later viewed web page in the web browser. Thepointer icon 826 may allow a user to activate a pointer within thedisplay area of the remote application view 704. The MOUSE icon 828 mayallow a user to activate a mouse cursor, which then will invoke mousemovements or mouse clicks, and the TOOLS icon 830 may open further menuscontaining additional tools, as provided in a configuration file and asprovided by the OS 460 of the client device 202.

It will be appreciated by one skilled in the art that, according to oneaspect of the disclosure, because the control objects of the local GUIare rendered locally, these objects can be advantageously rendered atthe resolution of the local display 560 and can be rendered to havedimensions that can be easily navigated or handled by a user using afinger, a stylus or any other native navigation method(s) provided bythe client device 202 (e.g., track-ball, keyboard, etc.). Furthermore,the available display area for the remote application view (e.g., 704)of a remote application can be fully dedicated to content displayed bythe remote application by deactivating control GUI objects from theremote application view 704. For example, a web browser executed at aremote server 204 may be displayed in the remote application view 704after deactivating scrollbars and menu header of the web browser at theserver 204. The toolbar and the menu header controls can be provided bythe local GUI instead.

FIG. 9 illustrates an example of a composite view 900 that may berendered locally on display 560. The composite view 900 comprises thelocal GUI 902 and 906 and the remote application view 904 of a remoteapplication 327 running on the server 204. In this example, thegraphical control objects of the local GUI 902 and 906 include an IPaddress field, a LOAD button, a BACK button, a FORWARD button, a MOUSEbutton, and a GEAR button for remotely controlling a web browserapplication 327 running on the server 204.

Referring to the figures discussed above, various operations of themodules in a 204 sever and in a client device 202 are further describedbelow in accordance with one aspect of the disclosure.

Now referring to FIGS. 5B and 7, the client device 202 may furthercomprise an input device 560 and a user input module 550. In oneexample, the input device 560 comprises a touch screen overlaying thedisplay 560. In this aspect, the user may enter user inputs within adisplay area corresponding to the local GUI 702 and 706 by tapping on adesired graphical control object using a finger or stylus. The userinput module 550 may send user inputs to the local GUI 702 and 706 forremotely controlling the application 327 to the local view module 540.For the example of a touch screen, when the user touches a display areacorresponding to the local GUI 702 and 706, the user input module 550directs the corresponding user inputs to the local view module 540. Theuser inputs may comprise coordinates of the location where the usertouched the display 560.

The user may also enter user inputs within a remote application view 704of a remote application 327 on the display 560. For the example of atouch screen, the user may enter user inputs by moving a pointer (notshown) within a display area corresponding to the remote applicationview 704 of the remote application 327. In this aspect, the user inputmodule 550 directs user inputs within the remote view 704 to the remoteview module 535.

In one aspect of the disclosure, the local view module 540 may beconfigured to generate a command message based on user inputs to thelocal GUI 702 and 706 for remotely controlling the application 327 andsend the command message to the server 204. For the example of a touchscreen, the local view module 540 interprets user inputs to the localGUI 702 or 706 and then translates them into corresponding commandmessages. In this example, a user input may comprise coordinates of alocation where the user touches the local GUI 702 or 706 on the display560 or coordinates of a pointer within the local GUI 702 or 706controlled by the user, for example, using a pointer device. The localview module 540 can determine which graphical control object is selectedby the user based on the graphical control object in the local GUI 702and 706 corresponding to the coordinates of the user inputs. The localview module 540 determines the function associated with the selectedgraphical control object and generates a command message for the server204 with a command to perform the function. For example, if the usertouches the local GUI 702 or 706 (e.g., using a finger) at a locationcorresponding to a refresh button in the local GUI 702 and 706, then thelocal view module 540 generates a command message for the server 204 torefresh the web page.

In one aspect, the agent module 322 on the server 204 receives thecommand message and issues a command to the application control module325 to control the application 327 based on the command message. Forexample, if the command message is to refresh the web page, then theagent module 322 instructs the application control module 325 to reloadthe web page on the web browser application 327. Thus, the local viewmodule 540 generates command messages based on user inputs to the localGUI and sends the command messages to the agent module 322 on the server204, and the agent module 322 controls the remote application based onthe received command messages using the application control module 325.

In one aspect, when a local view module 540 receives one or more userinputs directed to, or placed into, a local GUI (e.g., 702 or 706), thelocal view module 540 may interpret the one or more user inputs,determine (or identify) function(s) corresponding to the one or moreuser inputs, and generate one or more command messages corresponding tothe function(s) by, for example, translating the one or more user inputsinto the command message(s). Determining the function of a user inputmay, for example, include identifying the type of user input (e.g., atext entry, a button selection, a menu selection) and/or determining afunction corresponding to the user input (e.g., a text entry for an IPaddress field, a selection of a BACK button, etc.). For example, whenthe user input comprises a selection of a button (e.g., refresh button)in the local GUI (e.g., based on coordinates of a user's touch on thedisplay 560), the local view module 540 may determine the function(e.g., refresh current web page) associated with the selected button. Inone aspect, these functions are predetermined. The local view module 540then generates a command message based on the determined function. Someexamples of command messages may include, but are not limited to, acommand to load a web page from an IP address, display a previouslyviewed web page, display a later viewed web page, refresh or reload acurrent web page, stop loading of a webpage, zoom in or out, switchapplications, open bookmarks or history (e.g., for a web browserapplication), and other commands. A command message may comprise acommand packet that is transmitted from the client device 202 to theserver 204 using various protocols, compressions and encryption schemes.The server 204 may also send commands and status information to theclient device 202. For example, the server 204 may send the clientdevice 202 a web page loading status, a redirected URL or keyboardstate.

In one aspect, the remote view module 535 may be configured to send userinputs received within the remote application view 704 to the server 204via the remote access module 452. The user inputs may include pointerinputs comprising coordinates of pointer movements and clicks (e.g.,mouse clicks). For example, the user may move a pointer (not shown)within the remote application view 704 using a touch screen, a touchpad, a trackball, a mouse or other pointer input device. In thisexample, the coordinates of the pointer movements may be transmitted tothe server 204. The user inputs may also include keyboard inputs. Theuser inputs may enter keyboard inputs using a graphical keyboard (e.g.,820 a) displayed on the display 560, a keypad or other device. Forexample, when the user desires to enter text at the location of apointer or cursor within the remote application view 704, the user maytap on a keyboard icon (e.g., 920) to bring up the graphical keyboard toenter the text. In one aspect, the client device access module 452 maysend user inputs comprising pointer inputs (e.g., coordinates of pointermovements) and keyboard inputs to the server 204 using RDP, ICA or otherremote access protocol.

In one aspect, the server remote access module 334 may receive the userinputs from the client remote access module 452 over the remote accessconnection 525 and sends the user inputs to the application controlmodule 325. The application control module 325 interprets the receiveduser inputs and controls the application 327 accordingly.

In one aspect, when an application 327 updates its display output inresponse to a received command message or user inputs, the remote accessmodule 334 may send updated display output data to the client device202. The client remote access module 452 receives the updated displayoutput data of the remote application 327 and sends the updated displayoutput data to the remote view module 535. The remote view module 535then generates an updated image of the display output of the remoteapplication, which is displayed within the remote application view 704of the display 560.

Aspects of the disclosure allow the user at the client device 202 toremotely view an application running on the server 204 while controllingthe application using a local GUI that can be optimized for the display560 of the client device 202.

An advantage of aspects of the disclosure may be illustrated withreference to FIGS. 9 and 1B. FIG. 9 shows an example of a composite view900 at the client device 202 for a web browser application running onthe server 204, according to an aspect of the disclosure. In thisexample, the GUI of the application 327 running on the server 204 may besimilar to the GUI 122 shown in FIG. 1B, which is designed for a largedisplay. Instead of displaying an image of the remote application's GUI122 running on the server 204, the local view module 540 advantageouslygenerates and displays a local GUI 902 and 906 for controlling theremote application 327. In one aspect, the local GUI 902 and 906 in FIG.9 is not based on the display output of the remote application 327. Thelocal GUI 902 and 906 may be optimized for the display 560 of the clientdevice 202. An image of the display output of the remote web browserapplication 327 is displayed within the remote application view 904allowing the user at the client device 202 to remotely view the webbrowser application 327 while remotely controlling the web browserapplication 327 using the local GUI 902 and 906.

The local GUI 702 and 706 may be designed to have a similar look andfeel of a web browser application that is native to the client device(e.g., smartphone). This allows the user at the client device to controla web browser application 327 running on a server 204 in a similarmanner as a web browser that is native to the client device (e.g.,smartphone), while enjoying the benefits of server-side computing suchas increased computing power and resources available on the server 204.For example, a web browser application 327 running on a server hasaccess to plug-in applications on the server 204 for renderingmulti-media content. As a result, the plug-in applications do not haveto be, for example, loaded onto the client device 202. Another advantageof the local GUI is that it allows a user at the client device 202 touse the application on the server 204 in a user friendly environmentwithout having to extensively rewrite the application port theapplication to the client device.

In an aspect of the disclosure, the local GUI and the remote applicationview 704 on the display 560 can be controlled independently. Forexample, the remote view module 535 may allow the user to adjust thezoom and scroll the image of the remote application 327 within theremote application view 704 while the local view module 540 maintainsthe size and location of the local GUI 702 and 706 on the display 560.Thus, the local GUI 702 and 706 can remain on the display 560 and bereadily accessible to the user while the user manipulates the image ofthe remote application within the remote application view 704.

In an aspect of the disclosure, the agent module 322 may instruct theapplication control module 325 to deactivate the GUI of the application327 so that display output data of the application 327 sent to theclient device 202 does not include the GUI of the application. For theexample of the web browser 120 running on a server in FIG. 1B, the agentmodule 322 may deactivate the GUI 122 so that only the display of theweb content 124 is sent to the client device 202. This allows a user atthe client device 202 to view the web content 124 of the web browser 120running on the server 204 while controlling the web browser 120 with thelocal GUI 702 and 706 instead of the remote application's GUI 122running on the server 204.

The local GUI at the client device 202 is not limited to the example ofa web browser application and may be used to remotely control many otherapplications on the server 204. Examples of applications that may becontrolled by local GUIs include word processing applications, spreadsheet applications, multi-media player applications, electronic mailapplications, and other applications. For the example of a wordprocessing application, the local GUI may include graphical controlobjects for print, edit, and formatting functions. For a multi-mediaplayer, the local GUI may include graphical control objects for play,stop and rewind functions.

In one aspect, the client device 202 may have a plurality of local GUIsfor controlling different applications. In this aspect, when the user atthe client device 202 remotely launches an application on the server204, the agent module 322 may determine what type of application waslaunched. The agent module 322 may then send a message to the clientdevice 202 via the server remote access module 334 indicating the typeof application that was launched on the server 204. The client remoteaccess module 452 sends the received message to the local view module540. The local view module 540 may then select a local GUI from aplurality of local GUIs that matches the type of application indicatedby the received message. The agent 322 may also send a configurationfile to the client device 202 specifying the local GUI. Thus, the localview module 540 can change the local GUI to adapt to changes in theapplication running on the server 204.

FIG. 10 is a conceptual block diagram illustrating a server remoteaccess module 334 and a client remote access module 452 according to anaspect of the disclosure. In one aspect, a server remote access module334 comprises first and second server remote connection modules 1020 aand 1020 b and the client remote access module 452 comprises first andsecond client remote connection modules 1030 a and 1030 b. The firstserver remote connection module 1020 a and the first client remoteconnection module 1030 a communicate over connection 1025 a. The secondserver remote connection module 1020 b and the second client remoteconnection module 1030 b communicate over connection 1025 b. Theconnections 1025 a and 1025 b may be established between the server 204and the client device 202 over a network 206 using different sockets. Inthis aspect, different types of information may be communicated over thedifferent connections 1025 a and 1025 b.

In one aspect of the disclosure, the first server remote connectionmodule 1020 a and the first client remote connection module 1030 a areimplemented using a remote access application (e.g., RDP application)for communicating display output data and user inputs between the server204 and the client device 202. The connection 1025 a may comprise aplurality of virtual channels with different virtual channels carryingdisplay output data (e.g., images or audio output of a remoteapplication) and user inputs (e.g., pointer and keyboard inputs from auser at a client device) between the server 204 and the client device202.

The second server remote connection module 1020 b and the second clientremote connection module 1030 b may be configured to communicate commandmessages over the connection 1025 b. In this aspect, the second clientremote connection module 1030 b sends command messages from the localview module 540 to the server 204 over the connection 1025 b. The secondclient remote connection module 1020 b communicates the received commandmessages to the agent module 322. In this aspect, the agent module 322may manage the connection 1025 b. In one aspect, the second remoteconnection module 1020 b may be integrated with the agent module 322.Thus, in this aspect, the command messages are communicated over adifferent connection than the display data and user inputs. An advantageof this aspect is that the command messages may be communicated using adifferent protocol than the display data and user inputs. For example,the display output data and user inputs may be communicated using aremote access protocol (e.g., RDP) while the command messages arecommunicated using a different protocol. For example, the commandmessages may be communicated using a protocol having differentencryption, compression and/or security features than the remote accessprotocol.

FIG. 11 depicts an example of the connection 1025 a comprising multiplevirtual channels 1120 a to 1120 c and the connection 1025 b. In thisexample, the connection 1025 a may be based on a remote access protocol(e.g., RDP) for communicating display output data and user inputs ondifferent virtual channels 1120 a to 1120 c. The connection 1025 b isused to communicate command messages. Alternatively, the commandmessages may be sent over the connection 1025 a, in which case thesecond remote connection modules 1020 b and 1030 b may be omitted. Forexample, the command messages may be sent on a virtual channel of theconnection 1025 a established for command messages. In an aspect, acommand message may include a flag or other indicator identifying themessage as a command message.

FIGS. 10 and 11 illustrate merely examples of communications between aserver and a client device. A server may include one or more remoteconnection modules (e.g., one, two, three or more), and a client deviceinclude one or more remote connection modules (e.g., one, two, three ormore).

FIG. 12 is a conceptual block diagram illustrating an example of asystem.

A system 1200 may be, for example, a client device or a server. Thesystem 1200 includes a processing system 1202. The processing system1202 is capable of communication with a receiver 1206 and a transmitter1209 through a bus 1204 or other structures or devices. It should beunderstood that communication means other than busses can be utilizedwith the disclosed configurations. The processing system 1202 cangenerate audio, video, multimedia, and/or other types of data to beprovided to the transmitter 1209 for communication. In addition, audio,video, multimedia, and/or other types of data can be received at thereceiver 1206, and processed by the processing system 1202.

The processing system 1202 may include a general-purpose processor or aspecific-purpose processor for executing instructions and may furtherinclude a machine-readable medium 1219, such as a volatile ornon-volatile memory, for storing data and/or instructions for softwareprograms. The instructions, which may be stored in a machine-readablemedium 1210 and/or 1219, may be executed by the processing system 1202to control and manage access to the various networks, as well as provideother communication and processing functions. The instructions may alsoinclude instructions executed by the processing system 1202 for varioususer interface devices, such as a display 1212 and a keypad 1214. Theprocessing system 1202 may include an input port 1222 and an output port1224. Each of the input port 1222 and the output port 1224 may includeone or more ports. The input port 1222 and the output port 1224 may bethe same port (e.g., a bi-directional port) or may be different ports.

The processing system 1202 may be implemented using software, hardware,or a combination of both. By way of example, the processing system 102may be implemented with one or more processors. A processor may be ageneral-purpose microprocessor, a microcontroller, a Digital SignalProcessor (DSP), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), aField Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), a Programmable Logic Device (PLD),a controller, a state machine, gated logic, discrete hardwarecomponents, or any other suitable device that can perform calculationsor other manipulations of information.

A machine-readable medium can be one or more machine-readable media.Software shall be construed broadly to mean instructions, data, or anycombination thereof, whether referred to as software, firmware,middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or otherwise.Instructions may include code (e.g., in source code format, binary codeformat, executable code format, or any other suitable format of code).

Machine-readable media (e.g., 1219) may include storage integrated intoa processing system, such as might be the case with an ASIC.Machine-readable media (e.g., 1210) may also include storage external toa processing system, such as a Random Access Memory (RAM), a flashmemory, a Read Only Memory (ROM), a Programmable Read-Only Memory(PROM), an Erasable PROM (EPROM), registers, a hard disk, a removabledisk, a CD-ROM, a DVD, or any other suitable storage device. Inaddition, machine-readable media may include a transmission line or acarrier wave that encodes a data signal. Those skilled in the art willrecognize how best to implement the described functionality for theprocessing system 1202. According to one aspect of the disclosure, amachine-readable medium is a computer-readable medium encoded or storedwith instructions and is a computing element, which defines structuraland functional interrelationships between the instructions and the restof the system, which permit the instructions' functionality to berealized. Instructions may be executable, for example, by a clientdevice or server or by a processing system of a client device or server.Instructions can be, for example, a computer program including code.

An interface 1216 may be any type of interface and may reside betweenany of the components shown in FIG. 12. An interface 1216 may also be,for example, an interface to the outside world (e.g., an Internetnetwork interface). A transceiver block 1207 may represent one or moretransceivers, and each transceiver may include a receiver 1206 and atransmitter 1209. A functionality implemented in a processing system1202 may be implemented in a portion of a receiver 1206, a portion of atransmitter 1209, a portion of a machine-readable medium 1210, a portionof a display 1212, a portion of a keypad 1214, or a portion of aninterface 1216, and vice versa.

Referring back to FIGS. 2 through 5B and 8B, in one aspect of thedisclosure, the agent module 322 may be configured to receivenotification of events that occur at the server 204 from the OS module324. For example, the OS module 324 may report certain events to theagent module 322 including when the client device 202 has logged ontothe server 204, when an application is launched on the desktop, when adialog box or new window is opened, when a textbox field is clicked,pointer movements, clicks (e.g., mouse clicks), and/or other events. Toreceive notification of events, the agent module 322 may register as anevents handler with the OS module 324 to receive reports of certainevents.

In one aspect of the disclosure, the agent module 322 may determine anaction to be taken at the client device 202 based on the reported event.The agent module 322 may then generate a message based on the determinedaction and send the message to the client device 202 (e.g., via theserver remote access module 334). For example, when the event is a clickon a textbox, the agent module 322 may determine that a graphicalkeyboard is to be activated on the client device 202 and send a messageto the client device 202 to activate the graphical keyboard 820 a. Atthe client device 202, the local view module 540 receives the messagefrom the agent module 322 and performs an action based on the receivedmessage, as discussed further below. In the above example, the localview module 540 may bring up the graphical keyboard 820 a on the display560 in response to the message.

Examples of events that may be reported to the agent module 322 andmessages generated by the agent module 322 for the client device 202based on the reported events are discussed further below.

In one aspect of the disclosure, the OS module 324 may report a click ona textbox to the agent module 322. This may occur, for example, whenuser inputs (e.g., pointer movements and a click) received from theclient device 202 result in a textbox of the application 327 beingclicked on. When this event occurs, the agent module 322 may determinethat a graphical keyboard is to be activated on the client device 202for the user at the client device 202 to enter text. The agent module322 may then generate a message for the client device 202 including acommand to bring up the graphical keyboard 820 a on the display 560 ofthe client device 202, and send the message to the client device 202(e.g., via the server remote access module 334).

On the client side, the client remote access module 452 receives themessage and sends the received message to the local view module 540.Upon reading the received message, the local view module 540 brings upthe graphical keyboard 820 a on the display 560 of the client device 202to allow the user at the client device 202 to enter text. An example ofthis is illustrated in FIGS. 14A and 14B.

FIG. 14A shows a display 560 at the client device 202, in which theremote application view 704 displays a web page of a remote web browserapplication 327. The web page includes a textbox 1310 (e.g., searchtextbox). In this example, the user at the client device 202 inputs userinputs (e.g., pointer movements and clicks) using a touch screen orother pointer input device at the client device 202. The remote viewmodule 535 sends the user inputs to the server 202 (e.g., via the clientremote access module 452). On the server side, the application controlmodule 325 controls the web browser application 327 based on thereceived user inputs. Updated display output data of the web browserapplication 327 in response to the user inputs are sent to the clientdevice 202. On the client side, the remote view module 535 updates theimage in the remote application view 704 based on the received updateddisplay output data.

On the server side, if a received pointer movement and click result in atextbox being click on, then the OS module 324 reports this event to theagent module 322. The agent module 322 determines that a graphicalkeyboard 802 a is to be activated at the client device 202 and generatesa message for the client device 202 including a command to activate thegraphical keyboard 820 a. The agent module 322 then sends the message tothe client device 202. On the client side, the local view module 540receives the message and brings up the graphical keyboard 820 a on thedisplay 560 in response to the message. FIG. 14B shows the display 560at the client device 202, in which the graphical keyboard 820 a isbrought up on the display 560 after the textbox 1310 has been click on.An I-beam 1415 or other type of cursor may appear in the textbox 1310 toindicate that text will be entered into the textbox 1310.

As the user at the client device 202 inputs text using the graphicalkeyboard 820 a, the text inputs to the graphical keyboard 820 a may bedirected to the remote view module 535, for example, as if the user hadentered the text using a physical keyboard. The remote view module 535may then send the user text inputs to the server 204 (e.g., using aRDP/ICA or other remote access protocol). On the server side, theapplication control module 325 enters the received text into thetextbox. Updated display output data showing the inputted text in thetextbox is then sent back to the client device 202. In this aspect, whenthe user at the client device 202 hits the enter button on the graphicalkeyboard 820 a after entering text, the local view module 540 mayautomatically deactivate the graphical keyboard 820 a.

An advantage of this aspect is that the graphical keyboard 820 a isautomatically brought up on the display 560 when the textbox 1310 isclicked on without requiring the user at the client device 202 to hitthe keyboard button 820. This is not possible in other approaches inwhich only display output data of the remote application 327 is sent tothe client device 202. In these approaches, the client device 202 simplydisplays the display output of the remote application 327 and receivesno information about when a textbox of the remote application is clickedon. By contrast, in the above aspect, the agent module 322 determineswhen the textbox has been clicked on and sends a message to the clientdevice 202 to bring up the graphical keyboard 820 a.

In one aspect, the local view module 540 keeps track of the area of thedisplay output of the remote application 327 that is currently displayedin the remote application view 704. FIG. 15A shows an exemplary area1510 of the display output 1520 that may be displayed in the remoteapplication view 704. In this example, the total area of the displayoutput 1520 may represent what a user at the server 204 might see on alarge display at the server 204. In this example, the server 202 maysend the entire display output of the remote application 327 to theclient device 204, and the client device 204 may store the entiredisplay output in a machine-readable medium (e.g., cache memory).

The local view module 540 may then allow the user to manipulate the area1510 of the display output that is displayed in the remote applicationview 704. For example, the local view module 540 may allow the user tozoom in by moving two fingers away from each other on a touch screen 565starting at a desired zoom in location. The local view module 540 mayalso include zoom in and zoom out buttons on the local GUI 702 and 706.The local view module 540 may also display scrollbars on the display 560that allow the user to scroll (up, down, left, right) the area 1510 ofthe display output 1520 displayed in the remote application view 704.FIG. 15B shows an example in which the area 1510 of the display output1520 displayed in the remote application view 704 has been scrolled tothe right. In this aspect, the local view module 540 may send a commandto the remote view module 535 specifying which area 1510 of the displayoutput 1520 to display in the remote application view 704 based oninputs from the user. The command may include coordinates and dimensionsof the area 1510 to be displayed in the remote application view 704.

As discussed further below, the local view module 540 may keep track ofthe area 1510 of the display output 1520 displayed in the remoteapplication view 704 to determine whether the user at the client device202 can view certain events (e.g., a dialog box popup) communicated tothe local view module 540 by the agent module 322.

In one aspect of the disclosure, the OS module 324 may report to theagent module 322 when a dialog box and/or window opens as a result ofuser inputs (e.g., pointer movements and clicks) received from theclient device 202. For example, a dialog box may open when a pointer ismoved over an object (e.g., icon) and/or when a object is clicked on.The dialog box may display information to the user and/or requestinformation from the user. For an example of a web browser application327, a new browser window may open when the user clicks on a link.

When the OS module 324 reports that a dialog box and/or window hasopened, the agent module 322 may determine that the dialog box and/orwindow is to be displayed to the user at the client device 202. In thisaspect, the OS module 324 may also communicate the coordinates anddimensions of the dialog box or window to the agent module 322. Theagent module 322 may then generate a message for the client device 202including the coordinates and dimensions of the dialog box or window.The agent module 322 may then send the message to the client device 202(e.g., via the server remote access module 334).

On the client side, the client remote access module 452 receives themessage and sends the received message to the local view module 540.Upon reading the received message, the local view module 540 maydetermine whether the newly opened dialog box or window is currentlyshown in the remote application view 704. The local view module 540 maydo this, for example, by comparing the coordinates and dimensions of thedialog box or window with the coordinates and dimensions of the area1510 of the display output 1520 displayed in the remote application view704. If the dialog box or window is not currently shown in the remoteapplication view 704, then the local view module 540 may command theremote view module 535 to scroll and/or zoom out the remote applicationview 704 by a certain amount so that the dialog box or window is shownin the remote application view 704. The local view module 540 maydetermine the amount that the remote application view 704 needs to bescrolled and/or zoomed out based on differences between the coordinatesand/or dimensions of the dialog box or window and the coordinates and/ordimensions of the area 1510 of the remote application view 704. Anexample of this is shown in FIGS. 16A and 16B.

FIG. 16A shows an example in which a dialog box or window 1610 opensoutside the area 1510 of the remote application view 704. As a result,the user at the client device 202 cannot see the dialog box or window1610. For example, the dialog box 1610 may require certain information(e.g., billing information) from the user to continue with a transaction(e.g., purchase). In this example, if the user cannot see the dialog box1610 at the client device 204, then the user may be unaware thatinformation is being requested.

In this example, the agent module 322 may send the coordinates anddimensions of the dialog box 1610 to the local view module 540 on theclient side. The local view module 540 may then determine that thedialog box 1610 is not displayed in the remote application view 704.After making this determination, the local view module 540 may commandthe remote view module 535 to scroll the remote application view 704 sothat the dialog box 1610 is shown in the remote application view 704.FIG. 16B shows an example in which the area 1510 of the remoteapplication view 704 has been scrolled to the right so that the dialogbox 1610 is shown in the remote application view 704. The local viewmodule 540 may also command the remote view module 535 to zoom out theremote application view 704 so that the dialog box 1610 is shown in theremote application view 704. This advantageously allows the user at theclient 204 to view the dialog box 1610 in order to receive informationin the dialog box 1610 and/or enter information requested by the dialogbox 1610.

In one aspect, the local view module 540 may notify the user at theclient device 202 when a dialog box or window 1610 opens outside thearea 1510 of the remote application view 704. In this aspect, the localview module 540 may display an arrow or other indicator on the display560 indicating the direction of the dialog box or window 1610. The usermay then choose whether to scroll the remote view application 704 in theindicated direction to view the dialog box or window 1610.

In one aspect, the OS module 324 may also report to the agent module 322when the dialog box or window closes. For example, a dialog box mayclose when the user has entered information requested by the dialog box.In this aspect, the agent module 322 may send a message to the localview module 540 indicating that the dialog box or window has closed. Thelocal view module 540 may then command the remote view module 535 toreturn the area 1510 of the remote application view 704 back to itsoriginal location before the dialog box or window was opened. In otherwords, the local view module 540 may undo the scrolling and/or zoomingwhen the dialog box or window closes.

In one aspect, the OS module 324 may also report to the agent module 322when a new web page is loaded in a web browser application 327. Theagent module 322 may then send a message to the local view module 540informing the local view module 540 that a new web page has been loaded.The local view module 540 may then command the remote view module 535 tozoom out the remote application view 704 to show substantially theentire display output 1520. This aspect automatically gives the user atthe client device 202 an overview of content in the newly loaded webpage. The user may then decide to zoom and/or scroll the remoteapplication view 704 to focus on a desired portion of the new web page.

In one aspect, the OS module 324 may report the current coordinates(e.g., x-y coordinates) of the pointer to the agent module 322. Thecoordinates of the pointer may refer to coordinates of a pointer movedby the user at the client device 202 using a pointer input device orcoordinates of a location where the user touches a display 560 at theclient device 202 (e.g., using a touch screen overlaying the display560). The agent module 322 may use the current coordinates of thepointer to determine whether the pointer is on an object (e.g., picture)in the application 327. The agent module 322 may do this, for example,by determining the coordinates and dimensions of objects in theapplication 327 and comparing the coordinates and dimensions of theobjects with the reported coordinates of the pointer.

For an example of a web browser application 327, the agent module 322may determine the coordinates (e.g., x-y coordinates) and dimensions(e.g., width and height) of objects (e.g., pictures, icons, animations,banners, etc.) in a web page by analyzing markup language code (e.g.,HTML, XML, etc.) for the web page. The agent module 322 may receive themarkup language code from the application control module 325. The markuplanguage code for the web page may identify objects in the web page andtheir locations in the web page. The markup language code may alsoprovide attributes for each object including object type (e.g., picture)and dimensions (e.g., height and width) of the object. The agent module322 may use this information to determine the types of objects in theweb page and the coordinates and dimensions of the objects in the webpage. The agent module 322 may make this determination each time a newweb page is loaded into the web browser application 327.

In this aspect, when the agent module 322 determines that the pointer ison an object in the application, then the agent module 322 may determinethat substantially the entire object is to be displayed at the clientdevice 202. The agent module 322 may then send a message to the clientdevice 202 including information of the object. The information mayinclude object type (e.g., picture) and the coordinates and dimensionsof the object. On the client side, the local view module 540 may receivethe coordinates and dimensions of the object and use the receivedcoordinates and dimensions of the object to determine whethersubstantially the entire object is shown in the remote application view704. The local view module 540 may do this, for example, by comparingthe coordinates and dimensions of the object with the coordinates anddimensions of the area 1510 of the remote application view 704.

If the local view module 540 determines that substantially the entireobject is not shown in the remote application view 704, then the localview module 540 may command the remote view module 535 to scroll and/orzoom the remote application view module 535 by a certain amount to showsubstantially the entire object. The local view module 540 may determinethe amount based on differences between the coordinates and dimensionsof the object and the coordinates and dimensions of the area 1510 of theremote application view 704. An example of this is illustrated in FIGS.17 and 18.

FIG. 17 shows an example of a display 560 at the client device 202, inwhich the remote application view 704 displays a web page on the remoteweb browser application 327. The web page includes an object 1710 (e.g.,a picture). In this example, only a small portion of the object 1720 isshown in the remote application view 704 and a pointer 1705 is placed onthe object 1710. FIG. 19A shows the portions of the object 1710 that arewithin and outside the area 1510 of the remote application view 704.

On the server side, the agent module 322 determines that the pointer1705 is on the object 1720 based on the coordinates of the pointerreported from the OS module 324 and the coordinates and dimensions ofobjects in the web page. The agent module 322 then generates a messagefor the client device 202 including the coordinates and dimensions ofthe object 1710, and sends the message to the client device 202.

On the client side, the local view module 540 receives the message anddetermines whether substantially the entire object 1710 is shown in theremote application view 704. In this example, the local view module 540determines that only a small portion of the object 1710 is shown in theremote application view 704. The local view module 540 then commands theremote view module 535 to scroll the remote application view 704 to theleft so that substantially the entire object 1710 is shown the remoteapplication view 704. FIG. 18 shows an example of the display 560 afterthe remote application view 704 has been scrolled to the left to showthe entire object 1710 in the remote application view 704. FIG. 19Bshows that, after scrolling to the left, the entire object 1710 iswithin the area 1510 of the remote application view 704.

In one aspect, the local view module 540 may also zoom in on the object1710. For example, the local view module 540 may also command the remoteview module 535 to zoom in on the object 1710 in the remote applicationview 704. For example, the local view module 540 may center the object1710 in the remote application view 704 and maximize the size of theobject 1710 in the remote application view 704.

An advantage of this aspect is that, when the user shows an interest inan object by moving a pointer to the object or touching the object usinga touch screen, substantially the entire object is automatically shownin the remote application view 704. Thus, the user does not have toscroll and/or zoom out to see the rest of the object of interest.

In another example, the object 1710 may be a video. In this example, thevideo file for the object 1710 may be downloaded from a uniform resourcelocator (URL) and played using a media player application. The URL forthe video file may be included in markup language code for a web page orother source.

In this example, the agent module 322 on the server side may determinewhen the pointer is on the object 1710 and/or clicks on the object 1710based on coordinates of the pointer and/or pointer clicks reported fromthe OS module 324. The agent module 322 may then generate a messageincluding the URL for the video file, and send the message to the clientdevice 202.

On the client side, the local view module 540 receives the message,retrieves the URL for the video file from the message, and downloads thevideo file onto the client device 202 from the URL. In this example, theclient remote access module 452 may establish a connection with theInternet or other network, and the local view module 540 may downloadthe video file from the URL through the connection. After the video fileis downloaded or while the video file is downloading, the local viewmodule 540 may launch a local media player application on the clientdevice 202 and play the video file using the local media playerapplication. The local view module 540 may then display the output ofthe local media player application on the display 650. For example, thelocal view module 540 may display the output of the local view module540 over the remote application view 704.

A process for establishing a remote session on the server 204 for a userat the client device 202 will now be discussed according to an aspect ofthe disclosure. When the user at the client device 202 desires toremotely access a remote server, the local view module 540 may display aplurality of remote servers from which the user can select on thedisplay 560. For each available remote server, the client device 202 maystore an address (e.g., IP address) and user credentials (e.g., loginname and password) for the server. The user may then select one of theremote servers on the display 560, for example, using a touch screenoverlaying the display 560.

When the user selects a remote server, the client remote access module452 may initiate a remote access connection 525 with the server remoteaccess module 334 of the server 204. To do this, the client remoteaccess module 452 may send a request for remote access to the server 204(e.g., over a TCP/IP network connection using an IP address of theserver 204). The request may include user credentials (e.g., login nameand password). If the user credentials are accepted, then the serverremote access module 334 of the server 204 establishes a remote sessionfor the client device 202, providing the client device 202 with remoteaccess to the server 204.

In one aspect, the OS module 324 may notify the agent module 322 that aremote session has been established for the client device 202. The agentmodule 322 may then send a message to the client device 202, via theserver remote access module 334, informing the client device 202 thatthe agent module 322 is active and ready to accept command messages fromthe client device 202. On the client side, the client remote accessmodule 452 may send the message to the local view module 540. Uponreceiving the message, the local view module 540 may send anacknowledgement to the server 204. On the server side, the server remoteaccess module 334 may send the acknowledgement to the agent module 322.This process may be used to initialize communication between the agentmodule 322 and the local view module 540.

After initializing communication with the agent module 322, the localview module 540 may display a plurality of applications that areavailable on the server 204. The local view module 540 may display alist of the available applications in a menu on the display 560 and theuser may select a desired one of the applications, for example, using atouch screen. FIG. 20 shows an example of a local GUI 2006 listingapplications that are available on the server 204. The local GUI 2006 islocally generated and not generated from display output data from theserver 204.

When the user selects an application, the local view module 540 maygenerate a command message identifying the selected application and sendthe command message to the server 204 via the client remote accessmodule 452. On the server side, the server remote access module 334 maysend the command to the agent module 322. The agent module 322 may thenissue a command to the OS module 324 to launch the identifiedapplication 327 on the server 204. The agent module 322 may also commandthe application control module 325 to maximize the size of the displayoutput of the application 327.

The server remote access module 334 may then send display output data ofthe application 327 to the client device 202. On the client side, thelocal view module 540 may display a local GUI 702 and 706 for theselected application on the display 560. The local view module 540 mayalso translate user inputs to the local GUI 702 and 706 intocorresponding command messages and send the command message to the agentmodule 322, as discussed above.

In one aspect of the disclosure, the desktop module 328 may generate adesktop on the server 204. The desktop may include icons of availableapplications that can be selected and launched on the server 204. In oneaspect, the desktop module 328 may be integrated with the operatingsystem 330 (e.g., Windows-based operating system).

In this aspect, the server remote access module 334 may send displayoutput data of the desktop to the client device 202. On the client side,the remote view module 535 may display the remote desktop in the remoteapplication view 704 on the display 560. FIG. 21 shows an example of aremote desktop 2110 displayed in the remote application view 704 at theclient device 202. The remote desktop 2110 includes icons 2115 ofapplications that can be launched on the server 204 and a taskbar 2120.

In this aspect, the user at the client device 202 may select anapplication on the remote desktop displayed in the remote applicationview 704, for example, by moving a pointer 2125 to the icon 2115 of adesired application and clicking on the icon 2115 using a pointer inputdevice. The remote view module 535 may then send the entered user inputs(e.g., pointer movements and clicks) to the server 202. On the serverside, the server remote access module 334 may input the received userinputs to the desktop module 328. When received user inputs to thedesktop result in an application being launched on the server 204, theOS module 324 may inform the agent module 322. The agent module 322 maythen generate a message identifying the launched application and sendthe message to the client device 204 (e.g., via the server remote accessmodule 334).

On the client side, the client remote access module 452 may send themessage to the local view module 540. The local view module 540 may thendisplay a local GUI 702 and 706 for the identified application on thedisplay 560. For example, the client device 202 may store configurationfiles for a plurality of local GUIs for different applications. Thelocal view module 540 may then retrieve the configuration file 451 forthe local GUI 702 and 706 corresponding to the application identified inthe received message and generate the local GUI based on the retrievedconfiguration file 451. The local view module 540 may then display thelocal GUI 702 and 706 on the display 560 to allow the user to remotelycontrol the application 327 on the server 204, as discussed above.

In this aspect, the local view module 540 may also generate a local GUIfor the user at the client device 202 to control the remote desktop atthe server 204. For example, the local GUI for the remote desktop mayallow the user to select a background for the desktop, hide a taskbar ofthe desktop, and other functions. In another example, the local GUI forthe remote desktop may allow the user to minimize, resize, hide and/ormove a window for an application on the remote desktop. When the userenters user inputs to the local GUI for the remote desktop, then thelocal view module 540 may translate the user inputs into a commandmessage for the remote desktop. For example, the local view module 540may translate user inputs to a graphical control object (e.g., hidetaskbar button) on the local GUI into a command message to hide thetaskbar. The local view module 540 may send the command message to theserver 204 via the client remote access module 452. On the server side,the server remote access module 334 may send the command message to theagent module 322. The agent module 322 may then issue a command to thedesktop module 328 based on the received command message. For example,when the received command message is to hide the taskbar, then the agentmodule 322 may issue a command to the desktop module 328 to hide thetaskbar.

FIG. 22 is a conceptual block diagram of the agent module 322 accordingto an aspect of the disclosure. In this aspect, the agent module 322comprising a master agent module 2222 and a plurality of slave agentmodules 2224-1 to 2224-3. The agent module 322 may include any number ofslave agent modules 2224-1 to 2224-3. In this aspect, each slave moduleagent 2224-1 to 2224-3 may be configured to control a particularapplication module 326-1 to 326-3 based on command messages from theclient device 202. The master agent module 2222 may be configured toreceive a command message from the client device 202 (via the serverremote access module 334) and direct the command message to one of theslave agent modules 2224-1 to 2224-3.

In one aspect, there may be a number of applications 327-1 to 327-3running on the server 204, in which each of the correspondingapplication modules 326-1 to 326-3 is controlled by one of the slaveagent modules 2224-1 to 2224-2. In this aspect, the OS module 324 maynotify the master agent module 2222 which one of the applications 327-1to 327-3 is currently in focus on the server 204. For example, anapplication 327-2 to 327-3 may be in focus when an active pointer,cursor or I-beam appears in the window of the application 327-2 to327-3. The master agent module 2222 may then direct command messagesfrom the client device 202 to the slave agent module 2224-1 to 2224-3corresponding to the application 327-1 to 327-3 currently in focus.

In one aspect, the user the client device 202 may indicate which one ofa plurality of applications 327-1 to 327-3 currently running on theserver 202 he or she desires to access at a given time. For example, thelocal view module 540 may display a taskbar in the local GUI 702 and 704indicating which application are currently running on the server 204. Inthis aspect, the OS module 324 may notify the master agent module 2222which applications are running on the server 204 and the master agentmay send a message to the client device 202 identifying theseapplications. The local view module 540 may then generate a localtaskbar identifying these applications based on the message. When theuser selects an application from the taskbar (e.g., using a touchscreen), the local view module 540 may send a command message to theserver 204 identifying the application.

On the server side, the server remote access module 334 may send thecommand message to the master agent module 2222. The master agent module2222 may then send a command to the desktop module 328 to maximize theselected application and minimize or hide the other applications runningon the server 204 so that the display output from the sever 204 to theclient device 202 only shows the selected application. The master agentmodule 2222 may then direct subsequent command messages from the clientdevice 202 to the slave agent module 2224-1 to 224-3 corresponding tothe selected application 327-1 to 327-3.

The subject technology is illustrated, for example, according to variousaspects described below. Numbered clauses are provided below forconvenience. These are provided as examples, and do not limit thesubject technology.

1. A system for rendering at a local client side a composite viewincluding a local graphical user interface and a remote application viewassociated with a remote application running at a remote server,comprising:

a local view module configured to generate a local graphical userinterface (GUI) for controlling the remote application remotely from thelocal client side, configured to receive one or more user inputs to thelocal GUI, configured to determine a function corresponding to the oneor more user inputs, configured to generate a command message based onthe determined function, and configured to direct the command message tothe remote server;

a remote view module configured to generate a remote application view ofthe remote application based on display output data of the remoteapplication received at the local client side from the remote server;and

a display module configured to provide, to a local display at the localclient side, a composite view comprising the local GUI and the remoteapplication view of the remote application.

2. The system of clause 1, wherein the local view module is configuredto receive a message identifying a type of application running on theremote server and to select the local GUI from a plurality of local GUIsbased on the received message.

3. The system of clause 1, wherein the local view module is configuredto be controlled dynamically by the remote server to generate the localGUI based on the application running on the remote server.

4. The system of clause 1, wherein the remote view module is configuredto direct user inputs within the remote application view to the remoteserver.

5. The system of clause 4, wherein the user inputs from the remote viewmodule comprise pointer inputs, keyboard inputs or finger inputs (e.g.,gestures).

6. The system of clause 1, wherein the display output data includes animage or drawing commands of a display output of the remote application.

7. The system of clause 1, wherein the one or more user inputs to thelocal GUI include coordinates of a pointer or a user's touch on thelocal display, and the local view module is configured to determine thefunction based on a graphical control object of the local GUIcorresponding to the coordinates of the pointer or the user's touch onthe local display.

8. The system of clause 1, wherein the local view module is configuredto control a size and a location of the local GUI on the local displayindependently from the remote application view of the remoteapplication.

9. The system of clause 1, wherein the local view module is configuredto direct the command message to the remote server through a remoteaccess module at the local client side.

10. The system of clause 9, wherein the remote access module isconfigured to communicate with the remote server over a first connectionand a second connection via different socket connections, to receive thedisplay output data of the remote application and to send user inputsover the first connection and to send the command message over thesecond connection.

11. The system of clause 9, wherein the remote access module isconfigured to communicate with the remote server over a plurality ofvirtual channels, to send user inputs over a first one of the pluralityof virtual channels and to send the command message over a second one ofthe plurality of virtual channels.

12. A method for rendering at a local client side a composite viewincluding a local graphical user interface and a remote application viewassociated with a remote application running at a remote server,comprising:

generating a local graphical user interface (GUI) for remotelycontrolling the remote application from the local client device (e.g.,1310-A of FIG. 13A);

generating a remote view of the remote application based on displayoutput data of the remote application received at the local clientdevice from the remote server (e.g., 1320-A);

providing, to a local display, a composite view comprising the local GUIand the remote view of the remote application (e.g., 1330-A);

determining a function based on one or more user inputs to the local GUI(e.g., 1340-A);

generating a command message based on the determined function (e.g.,1350-A); and

directing the command message to the remote server (e.g., 1360-A).

13. The method of clause 12, further comprising:

receiving a message identifying a type of application running on theremote server; and selecting the local GUI from a plurality of localGUIs based on the received message.

14. The method of clause 12, further comprising directing user inputswithin the remote application view to the remote server.

15. The method of clause 14, wherein the user inputs from the remoteview module comprise pointer inputs or keyboard inputs.

16. The method of clause 12, wherein the display output data includes animage or drawing commands of a display output of the remote application.

17. The method of clause 12, wherein the one or more user inputs to thelocal GUI include coordinates of a pointer or a user's touch on thelocal display, and the determining the function based on the one or moreuser inputs comprises:

determining the function based on a graphical control object of thelocal GUI corresponding to the coordinates of the pointer or the user'stouch on the local display.

18. The method of clause 12, further comprising controlling a size and alocation of the local GUI on the local display independently from theremote application view of the remote application.

19. The method of clause 12, wherein the directing the command messageto the remote server comprises directing the command message to theremote server through a remote access module at the local client side.

20. The method of clause 19, further comprising:

communicating with the remote server over a first connection and asecond connection via different socket connections; and

sending user inputs over the first connection,

wherein the receiving the display output data comprises receiving thedisplay output data of the remote application over the first connection,and the directing the command message to the remote server comprisessending the command message over the second connection.

21. The method of clause 19, further comprising: communicating with theremote server over a plurality of virtual channels; and

sending user inputs over a first one of the plurality of virtualchannels,

wherein the directing the command message to the remote server comprisessending the command message over a second one of the plurality ofvirtual channels.

22. A machine-readable medium encoded with instructions for rendering ata local client side a composite view including a local graphical userinterface and a remote application view associated with a remoteapplication running at a remote server, the instructions comprising codefor:

generating a local graphical user interface (GUI) for remotelycontrolling the remote application from the local client device;

generating a remote view of the remote application based on displayoutput data of the remote application received at the local clientdevice from the remote server;

providing, to a local display, a composite view comprising the local GUIand the remote view of the remote application;

determining a function based on one or more user inputs to the localGUI;

generating a command message based on the determined function; and

directing the command message to the remote server.

23. The machine-readable medium of clause 22, wherein the instructionsfurther comprise code for:

receiving a message identifying a type of application running on theremote server; and

selecting the local GUI from a plurality of local GUIs based on thereceived message.

24. The machine-readable medium of clause 22, wherein the instructionsfurther comprise code for directing user inputs within the remoteapplication view to the remote server.

25. The machine-readable medium of clause 24, wherein the user inputsfrom the remote view module comprise pointer inputs, keyboard inputs, orfinger inputs (e.g., touch inputs).

26. The machine-readable medium of clause 22, wherein the display outputdata includes an image or drawing commands of a display output of theremote application.

27. The machine-readable medium of clause 22, wherein the one or moreuser inputs to the local GUI include coordinates of a pointer or auser's touch on the local display, and the determining the functionbased on the one or more user inputs comprises:

determining the function based on a graphical control object of thelocal GUI corresponding to the coordinates of the pointer or the user'stouch on the local display.

28. The machine-readable medium of clause 22, wherein the instructionsfurther comprise code for controlling a size and a location of the localGUI on the local display independently from the remote application viewof the remote application.

29. The machine-readable medium of clause 22, wherein directing thecommand message to the remote server comprises directing the commandmessage to the remote server through a remote access module at the localclient side.

30. The machine-readable medium of clause 29, wherein the instructionsfurther comprise code for:

communicating with the remote server over a first connection and asecond connection via different socket connections; and

sending user inputs over the first connection,

wherein the receiving the display output data comprises receiving thedisplay output data of the remote application over the first connection,and the directing the command message to the remote server comprisessending the command message over the second connection.

31. The machine-readable medium of clause 29, wherein the instructionsfurther comprise code for:

communicating with the remote server over a plurality of virtualchannels; and

sending user inputs over a first one of the plurality of virtualchannels,

wherein the directing the command message to the remote server comprisessending the command message over a second one of the plurality ofvirtual channels.

32. An apparatus for rendering at a local client side a composite viewincluding a local graphical user interface and a remote application viewassociated with a remote application running at a remote server,comprising:

means for generating a local graphical user interface (GUI) for remotelycontrolling the remote application from the local client device (e.g.,1310-B of FIG. 13B);

means for generating a remote view of the remote application based ondisplay output data of the remote application received at the localclient device from the remote server (e.g., 1320-B);

means for providing, to a local display, a composite view comprising thelocal GUI and the remote view of the remote application (e.g., 1330-B);

means for determining a function based on one or more user inputs to thelocal GUI (e.g., 1340-B);

means for generating a command message based on the determined function(e.g., 1350-B); and

means for directing the command message to the remote server (e.g.,1360-B).

33. The apparatus of clause 32, further comprising:

means for receiving a message identifying a type of application runningon the remote server; and

means for selecting the local GUI from a plurality of local GUIs basedon the received message.

34. The apparatus of clause 32, further comprising means for directinguser inputs within the remote application view to the remote server.

35. The apparatus of clause 34, wherein the user inputs from the remoteview module comprise pointer inputs or keyboard inputs.

36. The apparatus of clause 32, wherein the display output data includesan image or drawing commands of a display output of the remoteapplication.

37. The apparatus of clause 32, wherein the one or more user inputs tothe local GUI include coordinates of a pointer or a user's touch on thelocal display, and the means for determining the function based on theone or more user inputs comprising:

means for determining the function based on a graphical control objectof the local GUI corresponding to the coordinates of the pointer or theuser's touch on the local display.

38. The apparatus of clause 32, further comprising means for controllinga size and a location of the local GUI on the local displayindependently from the remote application view of the remoteapplication.

39. The apparatus of clause 32, wherein the means for directing thecommand message to the remote server comprises means for directing thecommand message to the remote server through a remote access module atthe local client side.

40. The apparatus of clause 39, further comprising:

means for communicating with the remote server over a first connectionand a second connection via different socket connections; and

means for sending user inputs over the first connection,

wherein the means for receiving the display output data comprises meansfor receiving the display output data of the remote application over thefirst connection, and the means for directing the command message to theremote server comprises means for sending the command message over thesecond connection.

41. The apparatus of clause 39, further comprising:

means for communicating with the remote server over a plurality ofvirtual channels; and

means for sending user inputs over a first one of the plurality ofvirtual channels,

wherein the means for directing the command message to the remote servercomprises means for sending the command message over a second one of theplurality of virtual channels.

The subject technology is illustrated, for example, according to variousaspects described below. Numbered clauses are provided below forconvenience. These are provided as examples, and do not limit thesubject technology.

1. A system for communication and for providing, to a remote clientdevice, a message related to an event at a server, in which the event isin response to one or more user inputs received from the remote clientdevice, comprising:

an agent module configured to receive notification of the event at theserver, configured to determine an action, based on the event, to beperformed by the remote client device on a graphical user interface(GUI) at the remote client device or a remote view at the remote clientdevice, configured to generate the message based on the determinedaction, and configured to direct the message to the remote clientdevice,

wherein the GUI is a GUI for controlling an application running on theserver from the remote client device, and the remote view is a view ofthe application running on the server.

2. The system of clause 1, wherein the event comprises a click on atextbox, the action is to activate a graphical keyboard of the GUI atthe remote client device, and the message comprises a command toactivate the graphical keyboard.

3. The system of clause 1, wherein the event comprises a window openingat the server, the action is to display the window within the remoteview at the remote client device, and the message comprises coordinatesand dimensions of the window.

4. The system of clause 1, wherein the event comprises a pointer on anobject of the application at the server, the action is to displaysubstantially the entire object within the remote view at the remoteclient device, and the message comprises coordinates and dimensions ofthe object.

5. The system of clause 4, wherein the object comprises a picture, anicon, an animation, or video.

6. The system of clause 1, wherein the event comprises a pointer clickon a video object, the action is to play a video file associated withthe video object at the remote client device, and the message comprisesa uniform resource locator (URL) for downloading the video file.

7. The system of clause 1, wherein the event comprises a dialog boxopening at the server, the action is to display the dialog box withinthe remote view at the remote client device, and the message comprisescoordinates and dimensions of the dialog box.

8. The system of clause 7, wherein the agent module is configured toreceive notification of when the dialog box closes at the server,configured to generate a second message informing the remote clientdevice that the dialog box has closed, and directing the second messageto the remote client device.

9. The system of clause 1, wherein the agent module is configured toreceive a command message from the remote client device and configuredto control the application on the server based on the received commandmessage.

10. The system of clause 9, wherein the agent module is configured toresize, move or maximize a view of the application on the server basedon the received command message.

11. The system of clause 1, wherein the agent module comprises:

a plurality of slave agent modules, wherein each of the slave agentmodules is configured to control one of a plurality of differentapplications on the server based on command messages from the remoteclient device; and

a master agent module configured to direct command messages, from theremote client device, for one of the plurality of different applicationsto a corresponding one of the plurality of slave agent modules.

12. The system of clause 1, wherein the system is the server comprisinga processing system.

13. A method performed at a server for providing, to a remote clientdevice, a message related to an event at the server, in which the eventis in response to one or more user inputs received from the remoteclient device, comprising:

receiving notification of the event at the server (e.g., 2310-A of FIG.23A);

determining an action, based on the event, to be performed by the remoteclient device on a graphical user interface (GUI) at the remote clientdevice or a remote view at the remote client device (e.g., 2320-A);

generating the message based on the determined action (e.g., 2330-A);and

directing the message to the remote client device (e.g., 2340-A),

wherein the GUI is a GUI for controlling an application running on theserver from the remote client device, and the remote view is a view ofthe application running on the server.

14. The method of clause 13, wherein the event comprises a click on atextbox, the action is to activate a graphical keyboard of the GUI atthe remote client device, and the message comprises a command toactivate the graphical keyboard.

15. The method of clause 13, wherein the event comprises a windowopening at the server, the action is to display the window within theremote view at the remote client device, and the message comprisescoordinates and dimensions of the window.

16. The method of clause 13, wherein the event comprises a pointer on anobject of the application at the server, the action is to displaysubstantially the entire object within the remote view at the remoteclient device, and the message comprises coordinates and dimensions ofthe object.

17. The method of clause 16, wherein the object comprises a picture, anicon, an animation, or video.

18. The method of clause 13, wherein the event comprises a pointer clickon a video object, the action is to play a video file associated withthe video object at the remote client device, and the message comprisesa uniform resource locator (URL) for downloading the video file.

19. The method of clause 13, wherein the event comprises a dialog boxopening at the server, the action is to display the dialog box withinthe remote view at the remote client device, and the message comprisescoordinates and dimensions of the dialog box.

20. The method of clause 19, further comprising:

receiving notification of when the dialog box closes at the server;

generating a second message informing the remote client device that thedialog box has closed; and

directing the second message to the remote client device.

21. The method of clause 13, further comprising:

receiving a command message from the remote client device; and

controlling the application on the server based on the received commandmessage.

22. The method of clause 21, further comprising:

resizing, moving or maximizing a view of the application on the serverbased on the received command message.

23. The method of clause 13, further comprising:

receiving command messages from the remote client devices; directing thereceived command messages to one of a plurality of differentapplications on the server; and

controlling the one of the plurality of different applications on theserver based on the received command messages.

24. A machine-readable medium encoded with instructions for providing,to a remote client device, a message related to an event at a server, inwhich the event is in response to one or more user inputs received fromthe remote client device, the instructions comprising code for:

receiving notification of the event at the server;

determining an action, based on the event, to be performed by the remoteclient device on a graphical user interface (GUI) at the remote clientdevice or a remote view at the remote client device;

generating the message based on the determined action; and

directing the message to the remote client device,

wherein the GUI is a GUI for controlling an application running on theserver from the remote client device, and the remote view is a view ofthe application running on the server.

25. The machine-readable medium of clause 24, wherein the eventcomprises a click on a textbox, the action is to activate a graphicalkeyboard of the GUI at the remote client device, and the messagecomprises a command to activate the graphical keyboard.

26. The machine-readable medium of clause 24, wherein the eventcomprises a window opening at the server, the action is to display thewindow within the remote view at the remote client device, and themessage comprises coordinates and dimensions of the window.

27. The machine-readable medium of clause 24, wherein the eventcomprises a pointer on an object of the application at the server, theaction is to display substantially the entire object within the remoteview at the remote client device, and the message comprises coordinatesand dimensions of the object.

28. The machine-readable medium of clause 27, wherein the objectcomprises a picture, an icon, an animation, or video.

29. The machine-readable medium of clause 24, wherein the eventcomprises a pointer click on a video object, the action is to play avideo file associated with the video object at the remote client device,and the message comprises a uniform resource locator (URL) fordownloading the video file.

30. The machine-readable medium of clause 24, wherein the eventcomprises a dialog box opening at the server, the action is to displaythe dialog box within the remote view at the remote client device, andthe message comprises coordinates and dimensions of the dialog box.

31. The machine-readable medium of clause 30, wherein the instructionsfurther comprises code for:

receiving notification of when the dialog box closes at the server;

generating a second message informing the remote client device that thedialog box has closed; and

directing the second message to the remote client device.

32. The machine-readable medium of clause 24, wherein the instructionsfurther comprise code for:

receiving a command message from the remote client device; and

controlling the application on the server based on the received commandmessage.

33. The machine-readable medium of clause 32, wherein the instructionsfurther comprise code for:

resizing, moving or maximizing a view of the application on the serverbased on the received command message.

34. The machine-readable medium of clause 24, wherein the instructionsfurther comprise code for:

receiving command messages from the remote client devices;

directing the received command messages to one of a plurality ofdifferent applications on the server; and

controlling the one of the plurality of different applications on theserver based on received command messages.

35. An apparatus for providing, to a remote client device, a messagerelated to an event at the server, in which the event is in response toone or more user inputs received from the remote client device,comprising:

means for receiving notification of the event at the server (e.g.,2310-B of FIG. 23B);

means for determining an action, based on the event, to be performed bythe remote client device on a graphical user interface (GUI) at theremote client device or a remote view at the remote client device (e.g.,2320-B);

means for generating the message based on the determined action (e.g.,2330-B); and

means for directing the message to the remote client device (e.g.,2340-B),

wherein the GUI is a GUI for controlling an application running on theserver from the remote client device, and the remote view is a view ofthe application running on the server.

36. The apparatus of clause 35, wherein the event comprises a click on atextbox, the action is to activate a graphical keyboard of the GUI atthe remote client device, and the message comprises a command toactivate the graphical keyboard.

37. The apparatus of clause 35, wherein the event comprises a windowopening at the server, the action is to display the window within theremote view at the remote client device, and the message comprisescoordinates and dimensions of the window.

38. The apparatus of clause 35, wherein the event comprises a pointer onan object of the application at the server, the action is to displaysubstantially the entire object within the remote view at the remoteclient device, and the message comprises coordinates and dimensions ofthe object.

39. The apparatus of clause 38, wherein the object comprises a picture,an icon, an animation, or video.

40. The apparatus of clause 35, wherein the event comprises a pointerclick on a video object, the action is to play a video file associatedwith the video object at the remote client device, and the messagecomprises a uniform resource locator (URL) for downloading the videofile.

41. The apparatus of clause 35, wherein the event comprises a dialog boxopening at the server, the action is to display the dialog box withinthe remote view at the remote client device, and the message comprisescoordinates and dimensions of the dialog box.

42. The apparatus of clause 41, further comprising:

means for receiving notification of when the dialog box closes at theserver;

means for generating a second message informing the remote client devicethat the dialog box has closed; and

means for directing the second message to the remote client device.

43. The apparatus of clause 35, further comprising:

means for receiving a command message from the remote client device; and

means for controlling the application on the server based on thereceived command message.

44. The apparatus of clause 43, further comprising:

means for resizing, moving or maximizing a view of the application onthe server based on the received command message.

45. The apparatus of clause 35, further comprising:

means for receiving command messages from the remote client devices;

means for directing the received command messages to one of a pluralityof different applications on the server; and

means for controlling the one of the plurality of different applicationson the server based on the received command messages.

The subject technology is illustrated, for example, according to variousaspects described below. Numbered clauses are provided below forconvenience. These are provided as examples, and do not limit thesubject technology.

1. A system for communication and for rendering at a local client devicea composite view including a local graphical user interface (GUI) and aremote view associated with a remote application running on a remoteserver, comprising:

a remote view module configured to generate the remote view of theremote application based on display output data of the remoteapplication received at the local client device from the remote server;

a local view module configured to generate the local GUI for controllingthe remote application remotely from the local client device; configuredto control an area of the display output data of the remote applicationthat is displayed in the remote view, and configured to keep track ofcoordinates and dimensions of the area; and

a display module configured to provide, to a local display at the localclient device, a composite view comprising the local GUI and the remoteview of the remote application.

2. The system of clause 1, wherein the local view module is configuredto receive a message from the remote server including a command toactivate a graphical keyboard of the local GUI at the local clientdevice and configured to active the graphical keyboard in response tothe received message.

3. The system of clause 1, wherein the local view module is configuredto receive coordinates and dimensions of a window or dialog box at theremote server from the remote server, configured to compare thecoordinates and dimensions of the window or dialog box with thecoordinates and dimensions of the area of the display output datadisplayed in the remote view, and configured to adjust the area of thedisplay output data displayed in the remote view based on thecomparison.

4. The system of clause 3, wherein the local view module is configuredto adjust the area of the display output data displayed in the remoteview by scrolling the area.

5. The system of clause 3, wherein the local view module is configuredto adjust the area of the display output data displayed in the remoteview by zooming in or zooming out the area.

6. The system of clause 3, wherein the local view module is configuredto receive a second message from the remote server that the window ordialog box has been closed at the remote server and configured to undothe adjustment of the area of the display output data displayed in theremote view in response to the second message.

7. The system of clause 1, wherein the local view module is configuredto receive coordinates and dimensions of an object of the remoteapplication from the remote server, configured to compare thecoordinates and dimensions of the object with the coordinates anddimensions of the area of the display output data displayed in theremote view, and configured to adjust the area of the display outputdata displayed in the remote view based on the comparison.

8. The system of clause 7, wherein the local view module is configuredto adjust the area of the display output data displayed in the remoteview such that substantially the entire object is displayed in theremote view.

9. The system of clause 8, wherein the local view module is configuredto adjust the area of the display output data displayed in the remoteview by scrolling the area.

10. The system of clause 8, wherein the local view module is configuredto adjust the area of the display output displayed in the remote view byzooming in or zooming out the area.

11. The system of clause 1, wherein the local view module is configuredto receive a uniform resource locator (URL) from the remote server,configured to download a video file using the URL, and configured toplay the video file using a local media player application.

12. The system of clause 1, wherein the system is the local clientdevice comprising a processing system.

13. A method for rendering at a local client device a composite viewincluding a local graphical user interface (GUI) and a remote viewassociated with a remote application running on a remote server,comprising:

generating the remote view of the remote application based on displayoutput data of the remote application received at the local clientdevice from the remote server (e.g., 2410-A of FIG. 24A);

generating the local GUI for controlling the remote application remotelyfrom the local client device (e.g., 2420-A);

controlling an area of the display output data of the remote applicationthat is displayed in the remote view (e.g., 2430-A);

tracking coordinates and dimensions of the area (e.g., 2440-A); and

providing, to a local display at the local client device, a compositeview comprising the local GUI and the remote view of the remoteapplication (e.g., 2450-A).

14. The method of clause 13, further comprising:

receiving a message from the remote server including a command toactivate a graphical keyboard of the local GUI at the local clientdevice; and

activating the graphical keyboard in response to the received message.

15. The method of clause 13, further comprising:

receiving coordinates and dimensions of a window or dialog box at theremote server from the remote server;

comparing the coordinates and dimensions of the window or dialog boxwith the coordinates and dimensions of the area of the display outputdata displayed in the remote view; and

adjusting the area of the display output data displayed in the remoteview based on the comparison.

16. The method of clause 15, wherein adjusting the area of the displayoutput data displayed in the remote view comprises scrolling the area.

17. The method of clause 15, wherein adjusting the area of the displayoutput data displayed in the remote view comprises zooming in or zoomingout the area.

18. The method of clause 15, further comprising:

receiving a second message from the remote server that the window ordialog box has been closed at the remote server; and

undoing the adjustment of the area of the display output data displayedin the remote view in response to the second message.

19. The method of clause 13, further comprising:

receiving coordinates and dimensions of an object of the remoteapplication from the remote server;

comparing the coordinates and dimensions of the object with thecoordinates and dimensions of the area of the display output datadisplayed in the remote view; and

adjusting the area of the display output data displayed in the remoteview based on the comparison.

20. The method of clause 19, wherein the adjusting the area of thedisplay output data comprises adjusting the area of the display outputdata such that substantially the entire object is displayed in theremote view.

21. The method of clause 19, wherein the adjusting the area of thedisplay output data displayed in the remote view comprises scrolling thearea.

22. The method of clause 19, wherein the adjusting the area of thedisplay output data displayed in the remote view comprises zooming in orzooming out the area.

23. The method of clause 13, further comprising:

receiving a uniform resource locator (URL) from the remote server;

downloading a video file using the URL; and

playing the video file using a local media player application.

24. A machine-readable medium encoded with instructions for rendering ata local client device a composite view including a local graphical userinterface (GUI) and a remote view associated with a remote applicationrunning on a remote server, the instructions comprising code for:

generating the remote view of the remote application based on displayoutput data of the remote application received at the local clientdevice from the remote server;

generating the local GUI for controlling the remote application remotelyfrom the local client device;

controlling an area of the display output data of the remote applicationthat is displayed in the remote view;

tracking coordinates and dimensions of the area; and

providing, to a local display at the local client device, a compositeview comprising the local GUI and the remote view of the remoteapplication.

25. The machine-readable medium of clause 24, wherein the instructionsfurther comprise code for:

receiving a message from the remote server including a command toactivate a graphical keyboard of the local GUI at the local clientdevice; and

activating the graphical keyboard in response to the received message.

26. The machine-readable medium of clause 24, wherein the instructionsfurther comprise code for:

receiving coordinates and dimensions of a window or dialog box at theremote server from the remote server;

comparing the coordinates and dimensions of the window or dialog boxwith the coordinates and dimensions of the area of the display outputdata displayed in the remote view; and

adjusting the area of the display output data displayed in the remoteview based on the comparison.

27. The machine-readable medium of clause 26, wherein the adjusting thearea of the display output data displayed in the remote view comprisesscrolling the area.

28. The machine-readable medium of clause 26, wherein the adjusting thearea of the display output data displayed in the remote view compriseszooming in or zooming out the area.

29. The machine-readable medium of clause 26, wherein the instructionsfurther comprise code for:

receiving a second message from the remote server that the window ordialog box has been closed at the remote server; and

undoing the adjustment of the area of the display output data displayedin the remote view in response to the second message.

30. The machine-readable medium of clause 24, wherein the instructionsfurther comprise code for:

receiving coordinates and dimensions of an object of the remoteapplication from the remote server;

comparing the coordinates and dimensions of the object with thecoordinates and dimensions of the area of the display output datadisplayed in the remote view; and

adjusting the area of the display output data displayed in the remoteview based on the comparison.

31. The machine-readable medium of clause 30, wherein the adjusting thearea of the display output data comprises adjusting the area of thedisplay output data such that substantially the entire object isdisplayed in the remote view.

32. The machine-readable medium of clause 30, wherein the adjusting thearea of the display output data displayed in the remote view comprisesscrolling the area.

33. The machine-readable medium of clause 30, wherein the adjusting thearea of the display output displayed in the remote view compriseszooming in or zooming out the area.

34. The machine-readable medium of clause 24, wherein the instructionsfurther comprise code for:

receiving a uniform resource locator (URL) from the remote server;downloading a video file using the URL; and playing the video file usinga local media player application.

35. An apparatus for rendering at a local client device a composite viewincluding a local graphical user interface (GUI) and a remote viewassociated with a remote application running on a remote server,comprising:

means for generating the remote view of the remote application based ondisplay output data of the remote application received at the localclient device from the remote server (e.g., 2410-B of FIG. 24B);

means for generating the local GUI for controlling the remoteapplication remotely from the local client device (e.g., 2420-B);

means for controlling an area of the display output data of the remoteapplication that is displayed in the remote view (e.g., 2430-B);

means for tracking coordinates and dimensions of the area (e.g.,2440-B); and

means for providing, to a local display at the local client device, acomposite view comprising the local GUI and the remote view of theremote application (e.g., 2450-B).

36. The apparatus of clause 35, further comprising:

means for receiving a message from the remote server including a commandto activate a graphical keyboard of the local GUI at the local clientdevice; and

means for activating the graphical keyboard in response to the receivedmessage.

37. The apparatus of clause 35, further comprising:

means for receiving coordinates and dimensions of a window or dialog boxat the remote server from the remote server;

means for comparing the coordinates and dimensions of the window ordialog box with the coordinates and dimensions of the area of thedisplay output data displayed in the remote view; and

means for adjusting the area of the display output data displayed in theremote view based on the comparison.

38. The apparatus of clause 37, wherein the means for adjusting the areaof the display output data displayed in the remote view comprises meansfor scrolling the area.

39. The apparatus of clause 37, wherein the means for adjusting the areaof the display output data displayed in the remote view comprises meansfor zooming in or zooming out the area.

40. The apparatus of clause 37, further comprising:

means for receiving a second message from the remote server that thewindow or dialog box has been closed at the remote server; and

means for undoing the adjustment of the area of the display output datadisplayed in the remote view in response to the second message.

41. The apparatus of clause 35, further comprising:

means for receiving coordinates and dimensions of an object of theremote application from the remote server;

means for comparing the coordinates and dimensions of the object withthe coordinates and dimensions of the area of the display output datadisplayed in the remote view; and

means for adjusting the area of the display output data displayed in theremote view based on the comparison.

42. The apparatus of clause 41, wherein the means for adjusting the areaof the display output data comprises means for adjusting the area of thedisplay output data such that substantially the entire object isdisplayed in the remote view.

43. The apparatus of clause 41, wherein the means for adjusting the areaof the display output data displayed in the remote view comprises meansfor scrolling the area.

44. The apparatus of clause 41, wherein the means for adjusting the areaof the display output displayed in the remote view comprises means forzooming in or zooming out the area.

45. The apparatus of clause 35, further comprising:

means for receiving a uniform resource locator (URL) from the remoteserver;

means for downloading a video file using the URL; and

means for playing the video file using a local media player application.

FIG. 25A illustrates an example of a display system 2500 that may beutilized by a client device, according to one approach. Display system2500 comprises central processing unit (CPU) 2504, graphics module 2514,and cathode ray tube (CRT) 2510. Graphics module 2514 may comprisedynamic random access memory (DRAM) 2506 and serializer 2508. In someaspects, graphics module 2514 may further comprise CRT 2510. Graphicsmodule 2514 facilitates displaying graphics module input 2516. In someaspects, graphics module 2514 may handle visual information including,for example and without limitation, text, drawings, video or other typesof multimedia. CPU 2504 may receive the graphics module input 2516 andprovide drawing commands to graphics module 2514. In display system2500, graphics module input 2516 may be “drawn” to (e.g., provided to orinput into) graphics module 2514, upon which, the graphics module input2516 may be displayed by CRT 2510. For example, graphics module input2516 can be stored in DRAM 2506. DRAM 2506 may store an entire array ofpixels pertaining to one image or picture displayed on a display screen,for example, CRT 2510. Serializer 2508 may then retrieve and outputgraphics module input 2516 from DRAM 2506 to CRT 2510 for display.

FIG. 25B illustrates an example of drawing commands 2502 that may beprovided to a display system, according to one approach. Each “x” symbolillustrated in FIG. 25B may illustrate one drawing command. In someaspects, drawing commands provide instructions or information to adisplay system (e.g., display system 2500) as to what is to be drawn ona display (e.g., CRT 2510). The instructions or information may include,for example and without limitation, the location, texture, geometry,shading, light intensity, or color, or any combination therein, of apixel or group of pixels of the display. In some aspects, a drawingcommand corresponds to multiple pixels. For example, in some aspects, adrawing command may correspond to between about 1% and 50% of the totalnumber of pixels of a display. In some aspects, a drawing command maycorrespond to less than about 1% of the total number of pixels of adisplay. In some aspects, a drawing command may correspond to greaterthan about 50% of the total number of pixels of a display. Still in someaspects, a drawing command corresponds to a single pixel of a display.In some aspects, a drawing command may comprise at least one of a rasteroperation, a multimedia frame (e.g., JPG/MPEG frame), a texture (e.g.,an Open GL texture), and other suitable drawing commands.

Drawing commands 2502 may be provided one drawing command at a time asshown in FIG. 25B. Drawing commands 2502 may be provided as remotedrawing commands using a decoder of a remote access module such as aremote desktop protocol (RDP) software (e.g., Microsoft® RDP) decoder.For example, remote drawing commands are provided, according to adrawing command rate, to a graphics module of a client device from aremote application running on a remote server. In some aspects, thedrawing command rate may be a rate at which the remote drawing commandsare decoded by a decoder of a client remote access module at the clientdevice when the remote drawing commands are received at the clientdevice from the remote server over a remote access connection betweenthe client device and a remote server. The drawing command rate may beup to thousands of drawing commands per second or greater. In someaspects, the methods described herein may work independent of a drawingcommand rate. In one aspect, a drawing command rate may be referred toas a sample rate. In some aspects, when RDP is utilized, each drawingcommand 2502 that is provided may correspond to a substantially smallnumber of pixels relative to the total number of pixels of a display.For example, in some aspects, when RDP is utilized, each drawing command2502 may correspond to a single pixel. In another example, when RDP isutilized, each drawing command 2502 may correspond to less than 1% ofthe total number of pixels of a display. In some aspects, when RDP isutilized, each drawing command 2502 that is provided may not correspondto a small number of pixels relative to the total number of pixels of adisplay. In some aspects, drawing commands may be provided utilizingother protocols or software.

In one example, graphics module input 2516 comprises drawing commands2502. Here, drawing commands 2502 are provided to (e.g., “drawn” to)graphics module 2514 at the drawing command rate, which may be acontinuous stream of drawing commands at up to thousands of drawingcommands per second. This may not be a problem for display system 2500because of its relatively simple architecture. Each drawing command 2502can be quickly processed by graphics module 2514 and then be displayedon CRT 2510. Because CRT 2510 can update each of its pixels about one ata time, receiving drawing commands (e.g., with each drawing commandcorresponding to a substantially small number of pixels relative to thetotal number of pixels of a display) one drawing command at a time maynot slow down the general operation of display system 2500.

FIG. 26A illustrates another example of a display system 2600 that maybe utilized by a client device, according to one approach. Displaysystem 2600 includes CPU 2604, graphics module 2614, and display 2612.Graphics module 2614 may comprise display memory 2618, graphicsprocessing unit (GPU) 2606, frame buffer 2608, and/or serializer 2610.In some aspects, graphics module 2614 may further comprise display 2612.In some aspects, graphics module 2614 may be referred to as a graphicspipeline. Graphics module 2614 facilitates displaying graphics moduleinput 2616. In some aspects, graphics module 2514 may handle visualinformation including, for example and without limitation, text,drawings, video or other types of multimedia. In display system 2600,graphics module input 2616 may be drawn to graphics module 2614, uponwhich, the graphics module input 2616 may be displayed by display 2612.For example, CPU 2604 receives graphics module input 2616 and providesthe graphics module input 2616 to display memory 2618 for storage. GPU2606 may retrieve and process graphics module input 2616, and thenupdate frame buffer 2608 with graphics module input 2616. Serializer2610 may then retrieve and output graphics module input 2616 to display2612. Display 2612 may be a liquid crystal display (LCD) or any othersuitable display device.

Graphics module 2614 may be implemented in various ways known to thoseof skill in the art. In some aspects, graphics module 2614 may comprisedisplay memory 2618 and any other components, if any, to extract drawingcommands stored in display memory 2618 such that the drawing commandsmay be displayed on display 2612.

Display system 2600 may represent display systems that, compared todisplay system 2500 (shown in FIG. 25A), are much more complicated interms of processing and capabilities. For example, display system 2600comprises more components such as GPU 2606, which enables complexgraphical processing. Due to the complexity of these display systems(e.g., display system 2600), receiving drawing commands 2502 (shown inFIG. 25B) as graphics module input 2616 may bog down display system 2600because resources are wasted when processing is devoted to one drawingcommand at a time, where each drawing command may only correspond to asubstantially small number of pixels compared to the total number ofpixels of a display.

In some approaches, drawing commands such as raster operations are drawndirectly to display memory 2618 as they become available from a decoderof a remote access module such as an RDP software decoder. For example,graphics module input 2616 may be the drawing commands 2502 shown inFIG. 25B. In such cases, a problem lies with the efficiency of therendering of decoded remote client software (such as RDP) drawingcommands on client devices. The existing implementations appear slow anduse too high a percentage of available CPU cycles, thus making thegraphical user interface (GUI) act non-responsively.

For example, RDP software client implementations on client devices(e.g., mobile devices) draw directly to display memory 2618 as drawingcommands are received. In implementations where access to this displaymemory is slow compared to the rate at which drawing commands arereceived, or when display memory is not available, or when long,complex, or layered drawing commands are provided, an RDP software thinclient device may render slowly and may become bogged down. On a slowremote client device, the user may see objects drawn in sequence insteadof the final completely drawn result.

FIG. 26B illustrates an example of drawing commands 2602 that may beprovided to a display system, in accordance with one aspect of thesubject technology. The foregoing problems may be solved by providinggroups of drawing commands at certain intervals instead of one at atime, in accordance with one aspect of the subject technology. Forexample, each “x” illustrates a drawing command. Each “O” represents thetime at which the respective group 2620 (e.g., groups 2620 a, 2620 b,2620 c, or 2620 d, etc.) of drawing commands 2602 is provided tographics module 2614 instead of providing individual drawing commands2602 to graphics module 2614 one at a time. In some aspects, each group2620 of drawing commands 2602 represents a frame (e.g., snapshot,picture, image, etc.) of what is displayed at display 2612. In someaspects, each group 2620 of drawing commands 2602 represents a portionof a frame displayed in display 2612. In some aspects, each group 2620of drawing commands 2602 represents an entire frame displayed in display2612.

According to an aspect of the subject technology, having individualdrawing commands 2602 wait until a group 2620 of drawing commands 2602are assembled before drawing to graphics module 2614 allows forefficient utilization of resources of display system 2600. In anexample, individual drawing commands 2602 within group 2620 a are notdrawn to graphics module 2614 until time t₀. The group 2620 a of drawingcommands 2602 may then be processed by graphics module 2614 anddisplayed in display 2612 as a single snapshot. Similarly, individualdrawing commands 2602 within group 2620 b are not drawn to graphicsmodule 2614 until time t₁, and so on. In some aspects, the time intervalbetween each group 2620 of drawing commands 2602 being drawn to graphicsmodule 2614 is referred to as a refresh rate or frame rate. In someaspects, refresh rate and frame rate may be used interchangeably. Insome aspects, the refresh rate may be periodic. In some aspects, therefresh rate is not periodic. For example, the time interval between t₀and t₁ may be different from the time interval between t₁ and t₂.

In one aspect, a configuration of the subject technology caches theresult of drawing commands 2602 in a temporary bitmap memory, which maybe smaller or larger than the actual display memory bitmap height/width,and then only updates (e.g., drawn to) the display memory periodically,limited to a frame rate not higher than what is humanly perceivable(e.g., about 60 hertz), from the temporary bitmap memory. In someaspects, the drawing commands 2602 may be remote drawing commandsreceived at a client device from a remote application running on aremote server. In some aspects, the client device does not run theremote application locally at the client device. According to someaspects of the disclosure, the responsiveness of RDP software clients isimproved from other approaches. Rendering appears faster, and more CPUcycles are available for other functions, including GUI responsiveness.

Now referring to FIGS. 27A and 27B, simplified diagrams of remotedrawing command system 2700 are illustrated in accordance with variousconfigurations of the present disclosure. The remote drawing commandsystem 2700 may include local client computing device 2710 (clientdevice) in communication with remote server computing device 2780(server or remote server system) using remote access connection 2740,which may include one or more virtual channels 2745 for communicationbetween client device 2710 and server 2780. In some aspects, as shown inFIG. 27A, client device 2710 may include buffer module 2735, clientremote access module 2730, graphics module 2722, and viewer controllermodule 2756 (e.g., viewer controller module 456 of FIG. 4), where viewercontroller module 2756 includes timer module 2720. In some aspects, asshown in FIG. 27B, client device 2710 may include client remote accessmodule 2730 and viewer controller module 2756, where viewer controllermodule 2756 includes graphics module 2722, buffer module 2735, and timermodule 2720.

Referring to both FIGS. 27A and 27B, server 2780 may include serverremote access module 2775, agent module 2770, and application module2790. Application module 2790 may include one or more applicationcontrol modules and one or more applications. Server 2780 may alsoinclude an operating system (OS), an OS module, a desktop module for adesktop of server 2780, and any other software or modules for running onserver 2780.

Client remote access module 2730 is configured to create, establish, orfacilitate establishing remote access connection 2740 with server remoteaccess module 2775 on server 2780. Together, client remote access module2730 and server remote access module 2775 are configured to allow clientdevice 2710 to access server 2780 over remote access connection 2740. Inone aspect of the disclosure, client remote access module 2730 andserver remote access module 2775 may be configured to allow clientdevice 2710 to remotely control server 2780 over remote accessconnection 2740. In another aspect of the disclosure, client remoteaccess module 2730 and server remote access module 2775 may beconfigured to allow GUI software to run remotely on server 2780 so thatit can be displayed locally on client device 2710. Exemplary remoteaccess applications, which include client remote access module 2730 andserver remote access module 2775 configured to create remote accessconnection 2740, are the Microsoft® Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP)application and the Citrix® Independent Computing Architecture (ICA)application. The subject technology, however, is not limited to theseexemplary remote access applications.

Client remote access module 2730 can include an appropriate terminalservice client dynamic link library as well as other static librariesfor use with a remote connection. Client remote access module 2730 mayinclude a terminal service client dynamic link library for a remoteaccess application such as the Microsoft® RDP application and theCitrix® ICA application. Server remote access module 2775 similarly caninclude appropriate system service modules for use with a remoteconnection. Client remote access module 2730 and server remote accessmodule 2775 can come pre-installed with the respective operating systemsoperating on client device 2710 and server 2780. Alternatively, clientremote access module 2730 and server remote access module 2775 can belater added or otherwise configured to operate with the respectiveoperating systems operating on client device 2710 and server 2780.

Client remote access module 2730 can initiate creating a remote accessconnection 2740. Remote access connection 2740 (or one or more virtualchannels created within remote access connection 2740) can be used forthe transfer between buffer module 2735 of client device 2710 and agentmodule 2770 or application module 2790 of server 2780 of informationrelated to remote drawing commands. In some aspects, server remoteaccess module 2775 may be a remote communication protocol server (e.g.,RDP server) that sends remote drawing commands to buffer module 2735.For example, buffer module 2735 may receive, at client device 2710 fromserver 2780 over remote access connection 2740, remote drawing commands,according to a drawing command rate, of a remote application running onserver 2780. The drawing command rate may be a rate at which the remotedrawing commands are to be decoded by a decoder of a client remoteaccess module 2730 at client device 2710 when the remote drawingcommands are received at client device 2710 from server 2780 over theremote access connection 2740 between client device 2710 and server2780.

In one aspect, the remote application may be any application running onserver 2780 (e.g., an application in application module 2790). In someaspects, client device 2710 does not execute or run the remoteapplication locally at the client device 2710. In some aspects, theremote drawing commands from the remote application are provideddirectly to server remote access module 2775 from application module2790. In some aspects, the drawing commands from the remote applicationmay be provided to agent module 2770 from application module 2790. Agentmodule 2770 may then provide the remote drawing commands to serverremote access module 2775. In some aspects, client remote access module2730 receives over the remote access connection 2740, or virtual channel2745, the remote drawing commands from server remote access module 2775.Client remote access module 2730 may provide the remote drawing commandsto buffer module 2735 at the drawing command rate.

In one aspect of the disclosure, whenever a remote access connectionsession is closed, client remote access module 2730 may instruct agentmodule 2770 or application module 2790 to stop sending remote drawingcommands to client device 2710 from server 2780. According to anotheraspect of the disclosure, a socket connection between agent module 2770and buffer module 2735 may be used instead of, or in addition to, remoteaccess connection 2740.

According to one aspect of the disclosure, while remote accessconnection 2740 and virtual channel 2745 may share the same physicalconnection or the same physical communication path, each of remoteaccess connection 2740 and virtual channel 2745 may comprise a distinctor separate communication “channel.”

According to some aspects of the disclosure, buffer module 2735comprises temporary bitmap memory, a temporary graphics memory buffer, atemporary memory buffer, cache, and/or other suitable types of memoryfor storing drawing commands. Buffer module 2735 may store the remotedrawing commands that are received from the remote application runningon server 2780. In some examples, actual drawing may occur in buffermodule 2735 in client device 2710. In some aspects, timer module 2720facilitates sending the remote drawing commands in buffer module 2735 tographics module 2722 (e.g., drawing to graphics module 2722) accordingto a refresh rate that is less than the drawing command rate. In someaspects, timer module 2720 is application/platform agnostic. Graphicsmodule 2722, for example, may be graphics module 2614 (shown in FIG.26A) or another suitable graphics module of a display system on a clientdevice. The drawing command rate, as discussed above, may be up tothousands of drawing commands per second.

Timer module 2720 may monitor buffer module 2735, according to a monitorrate, for one or more changes to the buffer module 2735. Changes to thebuffer module 2735 may include any new or additional remote drawingcommands that are stored in the buffer module 2735 that have not beenpreviously sent to graphics module 2722. Thus, timer module 2720 maydetect one or more changes to the buffer module 2735. If one or morechanges to the buffer module 2735 are detected, timer module 2720 mayfacilitate sending the remote drawing commands in the buffer module 2735to the graphics module 2722. The remote drawing commands in the buffermodule 2735 that are sent to the graphics module 2722 corresponds to theone or more changes to the buffer module 2735.

For example, timer module 2720 may set up a timer that periodicallychecks (at a monitor rate) to see if there have been any updates tobuffer module 2735. If updates have been found, timer module 2720 mayset the flag to refresh the display (e.g., a local display of clientdevice 2710) in the area that was changed in the display. If the flaghas been set, buffer module 2735 may send the updated or changed area ofthe display to graphics module 2722 to refresh the display of the clientdevice. In some aspects, timer module 2720 may be set to refresh thedisplay at a slower rate than the drawing command rate (which may, forexample, range from thousands to millions of drawing commands persecond), and/or at a rate limited to that perceivable by the human eye,such as about 60 hertz. In some examples, the refresh rate may begreater than about 60 hertz. In some aspects, timer module 2720 mayfacilitate updating only portions of the display screen memory (e.g.,display memory 2618 in FIG. 26A) that may need refreshing.

In some aspects, the monitor rate may be less than the drawing commandrate. The monitor rate may also be less than or equal to about 60 hertz.In some examples, the monitor rate may be greater than about 60 hertz.The refresh rate may be less than or equal to the monitor rate. Therefresh rate may be less than or equal to about 60 hertz. In someaspects, the refresh rate is periodic. In some aspects, the refresh rateis not periodic. For example, remote drawing commands are sent from thebuffer module 2735 to graphics module 2722 only when changes to thebuffer module 2735 are detected.

In some aspects, timer module 2720 may facilitate updating the displayscreen memory using only a portion of remote drawing commands receivedby buffer module 2735. In one example, temporary results of multipleremote drawing commands may be combined into buffer module 2735 so thattimer module 2720 may facilitate sending a smaller number of the remotedrawing commands (e.g., potentially as little as one) to graphics module2722 than the number of remote drawing commands received by buffermodule 2735 over remote access connection 2740.

In some aspects, timer module 2720 may facilitate sending portions ofthe remote drawing commands in buffer module 2735 to graphics module2722 according to a relation among the remote drawing commands. Forexample, remote drawing commands corresponding to one half of an image(e.g., one half of a bitmap) may be received by buffer module 2735 fromserver 2780. Timer module 2720 may allow these remote drawing commandsto be stored in buffer module 2735 until remote drawing commandscorresponding to the other half of the image (e.g., the other half ofthe bitmap) are received by buffer module 2735. Timer module 2720 maythen facilitate combining the two halves and sending the combined remotedrawing commands corresponding to the whole image (e.g., related drawingcommands) to graphics module 2722. An increased efficiency may result ifthe remote drawing command set-up time per drawing command, or perframe, is large compared to the actual drawing time of the image (e.g.,actual bitmap drawing time).

In one aspect of the disclosure, timer module 2720 may be a module or aWindows system service, and may be implemented as executable softwarecode (e.g., timer.exe). In one aspect of the disclosure, agent module2770 may be a module or a Windows system service, and may be implementedas executable software code (e.g., Agent.exe). In another aspect, agentmodule 2770 may be a module that performs a function or operation onbehalf of another module—such as a server operating system, a softwareapplication, or a driver on the server—and communicates with clientdevice 2710, while not disclosing the details of the function oroperation to client device 2710, or may be a module that performs a taskin the background. In some aspects, timer module 2720 may be a moduleseparate from other modules of client device 2710 shown in FIG. 27A or27B. For example, instead of being part of viewer control module 2756, atimer module may be part of another module (e.g., another program) inclient device 2710, where the timer module may produce a functionalityas described herein as if it were a separate timer module. In yetanother aspect, agent module 2770 may be a module that performs otherfunctions or operations.

Referring back to FIG. 7, display 560 may be display 2612 as shown inFIG. 26A. In some aspects, sending drawing commands to a graphics moduleof client device 202 (e.g., graphics module 2722 in FIG. 27A or FIG.27B) results in the display of those drawing commands on display 560.For example, a remote application that is running on a server may sendremote drawing commands to client device 202. By utilizing thetechniques for handling remote drawing commands as described above,client device 202 may display a view of the remote application ondisplay 560 as if the remote application were running directly on clientdevice 202. Furthermore, the display of the remote application on clientdevice 202 may be refreshed at a refresh rate that is less than what isperceivable by a typical human, thus allowing for efficient processingand utilization of resources for client device 202, in accordance withone aspect of the subject technology.

FIG. 28A illustrates an exemplary method 2800 for handling remotedrawing commands, in accordance with one aspect of the subjecttechnology. The method 2800 comprises receiving, at a system from aremote server system over a remote access connection between the systemand the remote server system during a remote connection session, remotedrawing commands, according to a drawing command rate, of a remoteapplication running on the remote server system (2802-A). The method2800 also comprises storing the remote drawing commands in a buffermodule (2804-A). The method 2800 also comprises facilitating sending atleast some of the remote drawing commands in the buffer module to agraphics module according to a refresh rate that is less than thedrawing command rate (2806-A).

FIG. 29 illustrates an exemplary method 2900 of facilitating sending thedrawing commands to a graphics module, in accordance with one aspect ofthe subject technology. As shown in FIG. 29, method 2900 (e.g., 2806-Aof FIG. 28A) may comprise monitoring the buffer module, according to amonitor rate, for one or more changes to the buffer module (2902). Insome aspects, the monitor rate may be less than the drawing commandrate. Method 2900 may also comprise detecting the one or more changes tothe buffer module (2904). If no changes are detected, then the remotedrawing commands are not sent to the graphics module, in accordance withone aspect of the subject technology. In such a case, the buffer modulemay be continued to be monitored according to the monitor rate, forfurther changes to the buffer module. Method 2900 may also comprisefacilitating sending the at least some of the remote drawing commands inthe buffer module to the graphics module if the one or more changes tothe buffer module are detected (2906). Thus, if changes are detected tothe buffer module, (e.g., new remote drawing commands are received bythe buffer module), then the new remote drawing commands are sent to thegraphics module, according to some aspects of the subject technology.The new remote drawing commands may correspond to the changes that aredetected.

According to various aspects of the subject technology, audio signalsreceived at a client device from a remote application running on aremote server may correspondingly be delayed along with the drawingcommands. In some aspects, the audio signals may be multiplexed in thesame pipeline as the drawing commands. In some aspects, a differentpipeline may be used. In some aspects, the audio signals may be storedin the same memory as the drawing commands or in different memory fromthe drawing commands. In some aspects, the audio signals may bepartially stored in the same memory as the drawing commands andpartially stored in different memory from the drawing commands (e.g.,split from a combined transport stream and then sent to a separate audiodigital signal processing (DSP) system for processing). A pipeline foraudio intended to be synchronized to the images drawn may be designed tohave a delay capable of matching, to some degree, the average delayincurred by the drawing command pipeline. In some aspects, if a portionof remote drawing commands is delayed, then a corresponding audioportion may be delayed substantially the same amount.

The subject technology is illustrated, for example, according to variousaspects described below. Numbered clauses are provided below forconvenience. These are provided as examples, and do not limit thesubject technology.

1. A system for handling remote drawing commands, the system comprising:

a buffer module configured to receive, at the system from a remoteserver system over a remote access connection between the system and theremote server system during a remote connection session, remote drawingcommands, according to a drawing command rate, of a remote applicationrunning on the remote server system, the buffer module furtherconfigured to store the remote drawing commands; and

a timer module configured to facilitate sending at least some of theremote drawing commands in the buffer module to a graphics moduleaccording to a refresh rate that is less than the drawing command rate,the timer module being application agnostic.

2. The system of clause 1, wherein the drawing command rate is a rate atwhich the remote drawing commands are to be decoded by a decoder of aclient remote access module at the system when the remote drawingcommands are received at the system from the remote server system overthe remote access connection between the system and the remote serversystem.

3. The system of clause 1, further comprising a client remote accessmodule configured to facilitate establishing the remote accessconnection between the system and the remote server system.

4. The system of clause 3, wherein the client remote access module isfurther configured to receive, at the system from the remote serversystem over the remote access connection between the system and theremote server system during the remote connection session, the remotedrawing commands of the remote application running on the remote serversystem.

5. The system of clause 4, wherein the client remote access module isfurther configured to provide the remote drawing commands to the buffermodule at the drawing command rate.

6. The system of clause 1, wherein the graphics module is configured tofacilitate displaying the remote drawing commands on a local display ofthe system, and

wherein the remote drawing commands comprise at least one of a rasteroperation, a multimedia frame, and a texture.

7. The system of clause 1, further comprising the graphics module, alocal display, and a processing system, wherein the graphics modulecomprises a display memory, a graphics processing unit and a framebuffer.

8. The system of clause 1, wherein the timer module is furtherconfigured to monitor the buffer module, according to a monitor rate,for one or more changes to the buffer module.

9. The system of clause 8, wherein the timer module is furtherconfigured to detect the one or more changes to the buffer module.

10. The system of clause 9, wherein the timer module is furtherconfigured to facilitate sending the at least some of the remote drawingcommands in the buffer module to the graphics module if the one or morechanges to the buffer module are detected.

11. The system of clause 10, wherein the at least some of the remotedrawing commands in the buffer module being sent to the graphics modulecorresponds to the one or more changes to the buffer module.

12. The system of clause 8, wherein the monitor rate is less than thedrawing command rate.

13. The system of clause 8, wherein the monitor rate is less than orequal to about 60 hertz.

14. The system of clause 8, wherein the refresh rate is less than orequal to the monitor rate.

15. The system of clause 1, wherein the refresh rate is less than orequal to about 60 hertz.

16. The system of clause 1, wherein the buffer module comprisestemporary bitmap memory, a temporary graphics memory buffer, a temporarymemory buffer or cache.

17. The system of clause 1, wherein the timer module is furtherconfigured to facilitate sending the at least some of the remote drawingcommands in the buffer module to the graphics module according to arelation among the remote drawing commands.

18. A method for handling remote drawing commands, the methodcomprising:

receiving, at a system from a remote server system over a remote accessconnection between the system and the remote server system during aremote connection session, remote drawing commands, according to adrawing command rate, of a remote application running on the remoteserver system;

storing the remote drawing commands in a buffer module; and

facilitating sending at least some of the remote drawing commands in thebuffer module to a graphics module according to a refresh rate that isless than the drawing command rate.

19. The method of clause 18, wherein the drawing command rate is a rateat which the remote drawing commands are to be decoded by a decoder of aclient remote access module at the system when the remote drawingcommands are received at the system from the remote server system overthe remote access connection between the system and the remote serversystem.

20. The method of clause 18, further comprising facilitatingestablishing the remote access connection between the system and theremote server system.

21. The method of clause 18, further comprising providing the remotedrawing commands to the buffer module at the drawing command rate.

22. The method of clause 18, further comprising facilitating displayingthe remote drawing commands on a local display of the system, and

wherein the remote drawing commands comprise at least one of a rasteroperation, a multimedia frame, and a texture.

23. The method of clause 18, wherein the graphics module comprises adisplay memory, a graphics processing unit and a frame buffer.

24. The method of clause 18, wherein the facilitating comprisesmonitoring the buffer module, according to a monitor rate, for one ormore changes to the buffer module.

25. The method of clause 24, wherein the facilitating further comprisesdetecting the one or more changes to the buffer module.

26. The method of clause 25, wherein the facilitating further comprisesfacilitating sending the at least some of the remote drawing commands inthe buffer module to the graphics module if the one or more changes tothe buffer module are detected.

27. The method of clause 26, wherein the at least some of the remotedrawing commands in the buffer module being sent to the graphics modulecorresponds to the one or more changes to the buffer module.

28. The method of clause 24, wherein the monitor rate is less than thedrawing command rate.

29. The method of clause 24, wherein the monitor rate is less than orequal to about 60 hertz.

30. The method of clause 24, wherein the refresh rate is less than orequal to the monitor rate.

31. The method of clause 18, wherein the refresh rate is less than orequal to about 60 hertz.

32. The method of clause 18, wherein the buffer module comprisestemporary bitmap memory, a temporary graphics memory buffer, a temporarymemory buffer or cache.

33. The method of clause 18, wherein the facilitating further comprisesfacilitating sending the at least some of the remote drawing commands inthe buffer module to the graphics module according to a relation amongthe remote drawing commands.

34. A system for handling remote drawing commands, the systemcomprising:

means for receiving, at a system from a remote server system over aremote access connection between the system and the remote server systemduring a remote connection session, remote drawing commands, accordingto a drawing command rate, of a remote application running on the remoteserver system (e.g., 2802-B of FIG. 28B);

means for storing the remote drawing commands (e.g., 2804-B); and

means for facilitating sending at least some of the remote drawingcommands in the means for storing the remote drawing commands to agraphics module according to a refresh rate that is less than thedrawing command rate, the means for facilitating sending beingapplication agnostic (e.g., 2806-B).

35. The system of clause 34, wherein the drawing command rate is a rateat which the remote drawing commands are to be decoded by a decoder of aclient remote access module at the system when the remote drawingcommands are received at the system from the remote server system overthe remote access connection between the system and the remote serversystem.

36. The system of clause 34, further comprising means for facilitatingestablishing the remote access connection between the system and theremote server system.

37. The system of clause 34, further comprising means for providing theremote drawing commands to the means for storing the remote drawingcommands at the drawing command rate.

38. The system of clause 34, wherein the graphics module comprises meansfor facilitating displaying the remote drawing commands on a localdisplay of the system, and

wherein the remote drawing commands comprise at least one of a rasteroperation, a multimedia frame, and a texture.

39. The system of clause 34, further comprising the graphics module, alocal display, and a processing system, wherein the graphics modulecomprises a display memory, a graphics processing unit and a framebuffer.

40. The system of clause 34, wherein the means for facilitatingcomprises means for monitoring the means for storing the remote drawingcommands, according to a monitor rate, for one or more changes to themeans for storing the remote drawing commands.

41. The system of clause 40, wherein the means for facilitating furthercomprises means for detecting the one or more changes to the means forstoring the remote drawing commands.

42. The system of clause 41, wherein the means for facilitating furthercomprises means for facilitating sending the at least some of the remotedrawing commands in the means for storing the remote drawing commands tothe graphics module if the one or more changes to the means for storingthe remote drawing commands are detected.

43. The system of clause 42, wherein the at least some of the remotedrawing commands in the means for storing the remote drawing commandsbeing sent to the graphics module corresponds to the one or more changesto the means for storing the remote drawing commands.

44. The system of clause 40, wherein the monitor rate is less than thedrawing command rate.

45. The system of clause 40, wherein the monitor rate is less than orequal to about 60 hertz.

46. The system of clause 40, wherein the refresh rate is less than orequal to the monitor rate.

47. The system of clause 34, wherein the refresh rate is less than orequal to about 60 hertz.

48. The system of clause 34, wherein the means for storing the remotedrawing commands comprises temporary bitmap memory, a temporary graphicsmemory buffer, a temporary memory buffer or cache.

49. The system of clause 34, wherein the means for facilitating furthercomprises means for facilitating sending the at least some of the remotedrawing commands in the means for storing the remote drawing commands tothe graphics module according to a relation among the remote drawingcommands.

50. A machine-readable medium encoded with instructions executable by aprocessing system to perform a method for handling remote drawingcommands, the instructions comprising code for:

receiving, at a system from a remote server system over a remote accessconnection between the system and the remote server system during aremote connection session, remote drawing commands, according to adrawing command rate, of a remote application running on the remoteserver system;

storing the remote drawing commands in a buffer module; and

facilitating sending at least some of the remote drawing commands in thebuffer module to a graphics module according to a refresh rate that isless than the drawing command rate.

51. The machine-readable medium of clause 50, wherein the drawingcommand rate is a rate at which the remote drawing commands are to bedecoded by a decoder of a client remote access module at the system whenthe remote drawing commands are received at the system from the remoteserver system over the remote access connection between the system andthe remote server system.

52. The machine-readable medium of clause 50, wherein the instructionsfurther comprise code for facilitating establishing the remote accessconnection between the system and the remote server system.

53. The machine-readable medium of clause 50, wherein the instructionsfurther comprise code for providing the remote drawing commands to thebuffer module at the drawing command rate.

54. The machine-readable medium of clause 50, wherein the instructionsfurther comprise code for facilitating displaying the remote drawingcommands on a local display of the system, and

wherein the remote drawing commands comprise at least one of a rasteroperation, a multimedia frame, and a texture.

55. The machine-readable medium of clause 50, wherein the graphicsmodule comprises a display memory, a graphics processing unit and aframe buffer.

56. The machine-readable medium of clause 50, wherein the instructionscomprise code for facilitating further comprise code for monitoring thebuffer module, according to a monitor rate, for one or more changes tothe buffer module.

57. The machine-readable medium of clause 56, wherein the instructionscomprise code for facilitating further comprise code for detecting theone or more changes to the buffer module.

58. The machine-readable medium of clause 57, wherein the instructionscomprise code for facilitating further comprise code for facilitatingsending the at least some of the remote drawing commands in the buffermodule to the graphics module if the one or more changes to the buffermodule are detected.

59. The machine-readable medium of clause 58, wherein the at least someof the remote drawing commands in the buffer module being sent to thegraphics module corresponds to the one or more changes to the buffermodule.

60. The machine-readable medium of clause 56, wherein the monitor rateis less than the drawing command rate.

61. The machine-readable medium of clause 56, wherein the monitor rateis less than or equal to about 60 hertz.

62. The machine-readable medium of clause 56, wherein the refresh rateis less than or equal to the monitor rate.

63. The machine-readable medium of clause 50, wherein the refresh rateis less than or equal to about 60 hertz.

64. The machine-readable medium of clause 50, wherein the buffer modulecomprises temporary bitmap memory, a temporary graphics memory buffer, atemporary memory buffer or cache.

65. The machine-readable medium of clause 50, wherein the instructionscomprise code for facilitating further comprise code for facilitatingsending the at least some of the remote drawing commands in the buffermodule to the graphics module according to a relation among the remotedrawing commands.

Those of skill in the art would appreciate that the various illustrativeblocks, modules, elements, components, methods, and algorithms describedherein may be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, orcombinations of both.

For example, a module (e.g., an agent module 322, a viewer controllermodule 456, a local view module 540, a remote view module 535, or anyother modules) may be implemented as electronic hardware, computersoftware, or combinations of both. In one aspect, a module(s) may be anapparatus since a module(s) may include instructions encoded or storedon a machine-readable medium, on another device, or on a portionthereof. In one aspect, a module(s) may be software (e.g., anapplication, a subroutine) stored in a machine-readable medium andexecutable by a processing system or a processor. In another aspect, amodule(s) may be hardware (e.g., machine-readable medium encoded withinstructions, a pre-programmed general-purpose computer, or a specialpurpose electronic or optical device).

Various modules may reside in one machine or in multiple machines. Inone example, modules for the server side (e.g., an agent module, anapplication module, a server remote access module, etc.) may be locatedin one server or spread over multiple servers. In another example,modules for the client side (e.g., a client remote access module, aviewer controller module, a local view module, a remote view module, adisplay module, etc.) may be located in one client device or spread overmultiple client devices.

In one aspect of the disclosure, when actions or functions are describedas being performed by a module or a component (e.g., establishing,sending, receiving, providing, building, displaying, registering,encrypting, decrypting, authenticating, notifying, accepting, selecting,controlling, issuing, transmitting, reporting, pushing, or any otheraction or function), it is understood that such actions or functions areperformed by the module or the component directly or indirectly. As anexample, when a module is described as performing an action, it isunderstood that the module may perform the action directly or mayperform the action indirectly, for example, by facilitating such anaction. For instance, when a session is described as being establishedby a module, it is understood that the module may establish the sessionindirectly by facilitating an establishment of the session. As yetanother example, when a view of an application is described as beingdisplayed or rendered by a module, it is understood that the view may bedisplayed or rendered by the module either directly or indirectly.

To illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, variousillustrative blocks, modules, elements, components, methods, andalgorithms have been described above generally in terms of theirfunctionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware orsoftware depends upon the particular application and design constraintsimposed on the overall system. Skilled artisans may implement thedescribed functionality in varying ways for each particular application.

Various components and blocks may be arranged differently (e.g.,arranged in a different order, or partitioned in a different way) allwithout departing from the scope of the subject technology. In oneaspect of the disclosure, the modules (or elements) recited in theaccompanying claims may be performed by one module or by a smallernumber of modules, and this arrangement is within the scope of theclaims. In another aspect, the modules (or elements) recited in theaccompanying claims may be performed by a larger number of modules, andthis arrangement is within the scope of the claims. In yet anotheraspect, a module (or an element) recited in the accompanying claims maybe performed by multiple modules, and this arrangement is within thescope of the claims. For example, a local view module and a remote viewmodule may be combined into one module. A client remote access module, alocal view module and a remote view module may be combined into onemodule. An agent module and a server remote access module may becombined into one module. In another example, these modules may bedivided into a larger number of modules.

It is understood that the specific order or hierarchy of steps in theprocesses disclosed is an illustration of exemplary approaches. Basedupon design preferences, it is understood that the specific order orhierarchy of steps in the processes may be rearranged. Some of the stepsmay be performed simultaneously. The accompanying method claims presentelements of the various steps in a sample order, and are not meant to belimited to the specific order or hierarchy presented.

The previous description is provided to enable any person skilled in theart to practice the various aspects described herein. The previousdescription provides various examples of the subject technology, and thesubject technology is not limited to these examples. Variousmodifications to these aspects will be readily apparent to those skilledin the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied toother aspects. Thus, the claims are not intended to be limited to theaspects shown herein, but is to be accorded the full scope consistentwith the language claims, wherein reference to an element in thesingular is not intended to mean “one and only one” unless specificallyso stated, but rather “one or more.” Unless specifically statedotherwise, the term “some” refers to one or more. Pronouns in themasculine (e.g., his) include the feminine and neuter gender (e.g., herand its) and vice versa. Headings and subheadings, if any, are used forconvenience only and do not limit the invention.

A phrase such as an “aspect” does not imply that such aspect isessential to the subject technology or that such aspect applies to allconfigurations of the subject technology. A disclosure relating to anaspect may apply to all configurations, or one or more configurations.An aspect may provide one or more examples of the disclosure. A phrasesuch as an aspect may refer to one or more aspects and vice versa. Aphrase such as an “embodiment” does not imply that such embodiment isessential to the subject technology or that such embodiment applies toall configurations of the subject technology. A disclosure relating toan embodiment may apply to all embodiments, or one or more embodiments.An embodiment may provide one or more examples of the disclosure. Aphrase such an embodiment may refer to one or more embodiments and viceversa. A phrase such as a “configuration” does not imply that suchconfiguration is essential to the subject technology or that suchconfiguration applies to all configurations of the subject technology. Adisclosure relating to a configuration may apply to all configurations,or one or more configurations. A configuration may provide one or moreexamples of the disclosure. A phrase such a configuration may refer toone or more configurations and vice versa.

The word “exemplary” is used herein to mean “serving as an example orillustration.” Any aspect or design described herein as “exemplary” isnot necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over otheraspects or designs.

All structural and functional equivalents to the elements of the variousaspects described throughout this disclosure that are known or latercome to be known to those of ordinary skill in the art are expresslyincorporated herein by reference and are intended to be encompassed bythe claims. Moreover, nothing disclosed herein is intended to bededicated to the public regardless of whether such disclosure isexplicitly recited in the claims. No claim element is to be construedunder the provisions of 35 U.S.C. §112, sixth paragraph, unless theelement is expressly recited using the phrase “means for” or, in thecase of a method claim, the element is recited using the phrase “stepfor.” Furthermore, to the extent that the term “include,” “have,” or thelike is used in the description or the claims, such term is intended tobe inclusive in a manner similar to the term “comprise” as “comprise” isinterpreted when employed as a transitional word in a claim.

1. A system for handling remote drawing commands, the system comprising:a buffer module configured to receive, at the system from a remoteserver system over a remote access connection between the system and theremote server system during a remote connection session, remote drawingcommands, according to a drawing command rate, of a remote applicationrunning on the remote server system, the buffer module furtherconfigured to store the remote drawing commands; and a timer moduleconfigured to facilitate sending at least some of the remote drawingcommands in the buffer module to a graphics module according to arefresh rate that is less than the drawing command rate, the timermodule being application agnostic.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein thedrawing command rate is a rate at which the remote drawing commands areto be decoded by a decoder of a client remote access module at thesystem when the remote drawing commands are received at the system fromthe remote server system over the remote access connection between thesystem and the remote server system.
 3. The system of claim 1, furthercomprising a client remote access module configured to facilitateestablishing the remote access connection between the system and theremote server system.
 4. The system of claim 3, wherein the clientremote access module is further configured to receive, at the systemfrom the remote server system over the remote access connection betweenthe system and the remote server system during the remote connectionsession, the remote drawing commands of the remote application runningon the remote server system.
 5. The system of claim 4, wherein theclient remote access module is further configured to provide the remotedrawing commands to the buffer module at the drawing command rate. 6.The system of claim 1, wherein the graphics module is configured tofacilitate displaying the remote drawing commands on a local display ofthe system, and wherein the remote drawing commands comprise at leastone of a raster operation, a multimedia frame, and a texture.
 7. Thesystem of claim 1, further comprising the graphics module, a localdisplay, and a processing system, wherein the graphics module comprisesa display memory, a graphics processing unit and a frame buffer.
 8. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the timer module is further configured tomonitor the buffer module, according to a monitor rate, for one or morechanges to the buffer module.
 9. The system of claim 8, wherein thetimer module is further configured to detect the one or more changes tothe buffer module.
 10. The system of claim 9, wherein the timer moduleis further configured to facilitate sending the at least some of theremote drawing commands in the buffer module to the graphics module ifthe one or more changes to the buffer module are detected.
 11. Thesystem of claim 10, wherein the at least some of the remote drawingcommands in the buffer module being sent to the graphics modulecorresponds to the one or more changes to the buffer module.
 12. Thesystem of claim 8, wherein the monitor rate is less than the drawingcommand rate.
 13. The system of claim 8, wherein the monitor rate isless than or equal to about 60 hertz.
 14. The system of claim 8, whereinthe refresh rate is less than or equal to the monitor rate.
 15. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the refresh rate is less than or equal toabout 60 hertz.
 16. The system of claim 1, wherein the buffer modulecomprises temporary bitmap memory, a temporary graphics memory buffer, atemporary memory buffer or cache.
 17. The system of claim 1, wherein thetimer module is further configured to facilitate sending the at leastsome of the remote drawing commands in the buffer module to the graphicsmodule according to a relation among the remote drawing commands.
 18. Amethod for handling remote drawing commands, the method comprising:receiving, at a system from a remote server system over a remote accessconnection between the system and the remote server system during aremote connection session, remote drawing commands, according to adrawing command rate, of a remote application running on the remoteserver system; storing the remote drawing commands in a buffer module;and facilitating sending at least some of the remote drawing commands inthe buffer module to a graphics module according to a refresh rate thatis less than the drawing command rate.
 19. A system for handling remotedrawing commands, the system comprising: means for receiving, at asystem from a remote server system over a remote access connectionbetween the system and the remote server system during a remoteconnection session, remote drawing commands, according to a drawingcommand rate, of a remote application running on the remote serversystem; means for storing the remote drawing commands; and means forfacilitating sending at least some of the remote drawing commands in themeans for storing the remote drawing commands to a graphics moduleaccording to a refresh rate that is less than the drawing command rate,the means for facilitating sending being application agnostic.
 20. Amachine-readable medium encoded with instructions executable by aprocessing system to perform a method for handling remote drawingcommands, the instructions comprising code for: receiving, at a systemfrom a remote server system over a remote access connection between thesystem and the remote server system during a remote connection session,remote drawing commands, according to a drawing command rate, of aremote application running on the remote server system; storing theremote drawing commands in a buffer module; and facilitating sending atleast some of the remote drawing commands in the buffer module to agraphics module according to a refresh rate that is less than thedrawing command rate.